garrote

A garrote, also spelled garrotte, is a device used to strangle someone by tightening a wire, cord, rope, or band around the neck. In many descriptions, it is a simple loop that is pulled tight, sometimes with handles or a stick used to twist it. Historically, the word is especially associated with execution by strangling, most famously in Spain, where the method was used for centuries as a form of capital punishment.

The garrote was not always just a handheld tool. The best-known version in history involved a chair and a metal collar that was tightened with a screw behind the prisoner's neck. This form became one of the most notorious symbols of execution in Spain. Its use faded during the 20th century, and Spain fully abolished the death penalty in 1995.

The word is not limited to formal executions. It can also refer more generally to a cord or similar thing used to strangle a person. In extended use, writers sometimes apply it metaphorically to something that seems to choke off freedom, growth, or progress.

Because of its close link to violence and death, the word carries a dark and serious tone. It is not common in everyday conversation, but it appears in historical writing, crime fiction, and reporting about execution or murder. When it shows up, it usually suggests a grim, brutal, and often old-fashioned form of killing.