Definition of "garrote" [gar•rote]

• A method of execution formerly practiced in Spain, in which a tightened iron collar is used to strangle or break the neck of a condemned person. (noun)
• The iron collar used for such an execution. (noun)
• Strangulation, especially in order to rob. (noun)
• A cord or wire used for strangling. (noun)
• To execute by garrote. (verb-transitive)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "Trell looked as innocent as the man who claimed his garrote was a handkerchief."
• "The second pronunciation of "garrote" sounds like "quote" and the current meaning of garrote is to execute by strangulation."
• "After the AFL/NFL merger, the garrote process would happen again in 1970, on an even bigger stage."