Learn Spanish (Latin America): El niño está a punto de ahogarse con la carne.

This phrase translates to "to be about to." To use it, you conjugate the verb estar (here, está for "he is") and follow it with a punto de plus an infinitive verb (here, ahogarse). It is used to describe an action that is on the verge of happening.

Why is ahogarse used here instead of just ahogar?

The base verb ahogar usually means "to drown" or "to suffocate" someone else. When you add the pronoun se to make it ahogarse, it means the action happens to the subject. In this context, it translates to "to choke."

Why does the sentence use con instead of a literal translation for "on"?

Prepositions often do not translate word-for-word between English and Spanish. While in English you choke "on" something, in Spanish you use ahogarse con (literally, to suffocate "with" something).

Can I move the pronoun se to a different part of the sentence?

Yes! When you have a conjugated verb phrase followed by an infinitive, you can either attach the pronoun to the end of the infinitive (as seen here: ahogarse) or place it right before the conjugated verb (estar). So, you could also say: El niño se está a punto de ahogar con la carne. Both are completely correct.