Michael William Jeffery, 55, appeared in the Dunedin District Court on Friday after earlier pleading guilty to strangulation and threatening to kill.
The court heard that the defendant and the victim had been in an on-off relationship and on September 28 he went to her house.
Jeffery became upset that dinner had not been prepared and began yelling at the woman.
He strangled her, digging his fingernails into her skin and shook her vigorously causing her to lose control of her bladder.
Jeffery pushed her to the ground, held her by her neck and said "I’m going to f...... kill you, I’ve been waiting for it".
He paced around the room, yelling and hitting items before telling her he would cut her up with his knife.
The defendant kicked the woman and spat in her face before fleeing the address in her vehicle.
Judge Nevin Dawson noted the defendant had a history of violence.
"Beating up women is not new to you," he said.
"Every time you look in the mirror and have a shave, look at the person staring back at you. That’s a coward who beats up women."
He highlighted the victim’s vulnerability and that there were children in the house at the time of the assault.
"The physical injuries repair themselves; the psychological damage does not," he said.
Judge Dawson sentenced Jeffery to two years’ imprisonment and made a protection order in favour of the victim.
