The verb πνεω (pneo) means to blow. In the New Testament this word occurs 7 times, see full concordance, and solely describes the blowing of wind. In other Greek literature, however, it's also used to describe a person exhaling (as in the Septuagint's translation of Isaiah 40:24). It's also the parent verb of the following:

The much debated noun πνευμα (pneuma), commonly translated with "spirit", which describes our ability to join with other people into teams, companies and cultures — follow the link to read our feature article on this noun for a more extensive discussion. This noun is used 385 times; see full concordance.

The verb πνιγω (pnigo) means to choke or throttle (Matthew 18:28 and Mark 5:13 only). It's apparently of unclear etymology, but any native speaker of Greek would probably have assumed that it had to do with our previous verb πνεω (pneo), to blow or exhale, in the same way that our English word "throttle" is related to "throat" and doesn't mean "give throat" but rather "squeeze throat" (just like "to brain" someone doesn't mean to give someone some clever advice but rather to hit someone on the cranium).

If indeed our verb πνιγω (pnigo) was understood to relate to πνεω (pneo), it would automatically mean: to keep someone from exhaling. This is rather worthy of note, since it implies that the Greeks understood that the act of breathing covers both the replenishing of requirements (breathing in), and the expulsion of wastes (breathing out). Someone who can't breathe in will "starve" from not getting what they need. Someone who can't breathe out will get slowly poisoned by their own wastes — and waste comes from not having a purpose for elements that were nevertheless absorbed, for not knowing what to do with certain things one has taken anyway.

When people are crucified, their stretched arms make their chest cavity expand and they can't breathe out. That means that they suffocate, but also drown in their own waste. When the post-Biblically named Longinus stabbed Jesus in his side (or belly, rather), water and blood came out (John 19:34) but no feces. This in contrast to fat king Eglon of Moab, who was stabbed in the belly by judge Ehud and produced a massive mountain of wafting refuse (Judges 3:22; see our article on Beelzebub).

Note that making fun of someone who is not as clever as we are, and doesn't quite know what to do with a certain issue at hand, is exactly the same thing as making someone so uncomfortable that they cannot poop or pee. It's actually quite common in our Western world for people to be ashamed of their toilet needs, which is horrendous because a failure to vacate one's wastes results in death. Perhaps this helps to explain why Jesus equated calling someone a fool with attempted murder (Matthew 5:22).

The purpose of crucifixion was not to kill someone (there are much more efficient ways to achieve death) but rather to make fun of someone (and to instill horror upon like-minded onlookers). Unlike the many paintings that depict the crucified Christ, with stretched legs and a dignified loin cloth, the Romans joined the ankles of their victims by a single nail so that their knees parted and their scrotum was exposed (Exodus 20:26, hence 28:42, also see Leviticus 18:29). The stress that ensued made the victim urinate and defecate, and since death would occur only days later, the victims of crucifixion would continue to evacuate themselves. Deuteronomy 23:12-14 prescribed that people should evacuate themselves in private and cover up whatever comes out. Crucifixion was specifically designed to demonstrate to any acolytes that their master was in fact full of sh*t. But Jesus wasn't.

In the classics, our verb is used to describe the literal choking or strangling of someone, but also the choking nature of stifling heat or overwhelming feelings (excitement, grief, anger). It may be used to describe cooking in a closed pot, or drowning in water. Our verb speaks of killing but emphasizes a death due to the inability to expel any ingredients, including wastes that thus pile up on the inside, until their excess overwhelms the carrier and results in madness and ultimately in death.

From this verb derive: