Throttle
/ˈθrɒt.əl/noun
To choke, squeeze, or restrict the flow of something; also, the control that regulates engine power.
Did you know?The word originally meant the throat itself, and the verb sense ‘to choke’ came later, making it one of those eerie cases where a body part became a word for domination.
Etymological Timeline
Old English
OE
þrotu
“the throat or gullet”
Middle English
ME
throte / throttle
“the throat; later, to choke by the throat”
16th Century
English
throttle
“to strangle or choke”
19th Century
English
throttle
“a device for regulating the supply of air or steam to an engine”
Modern English
English
throttle
“to restrict, control, or accelerate power or flow; also the control mechanism itself”