The verb suffocate has 7 senses (first 1 from tagged texts)
1. (3) smother, asphyxiate, suffocate -- (deprive of oxygen and prevent from breathing; "Othello smothered Desdemona with a pillow"; "The child suffocated herself with a plastic bag that the parents had left on the floor")
2. suffocate, stifle, asphyxiate, choke -- (impair the respiration of or obstruct the air passage of; "The foul air was slowly suffocating the children")
3. suffocate, choke -- (become stultified, suppressed, or stifled; "He is suffocating--living at home with his aged parents in the small village")
4. suffocate, choke -- (suppress the development, creativity, or imagination of; "His job suffocated him")
5. suffocate, stifle, asphyxiate -- (be asphyxiated; die from lack of oxygen; "The child suffocated under the pillow")
6. suffocate -- (feel uncomfortable for lack of fresh air; "The room was hot and stuffy and we were suffocating")
7. gag, choke, strangle, suffocate -- (struggle for breath; have insufficient oxygen intake; "he swallowed a fishbone and gagged")