1
as in to smooth
to make free from breaks, curves, or bumps
flattened out the wrinkled paper before attempting to trace the pattern
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to bury
to defeat by a large margin
if you don't understand the rules, you're going to get flattened when you try to play
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of flatten
Entire rows of homes appear completely flattened in a stark contrast to satellite imagery from April, captured in an Airbus photo provided by Google Earth, which shows the same neighborhood intact before the tornado struck.
—
Joe Edwards
john Feng, MSNBC Newsweek, 22 May 2025
Chuck’s Dairy Bar, Rolling Fork, MS An EF4 tornado flattened Chuck’s in March 2023, but owner Tracy Harden didn’t stop.
—Staff Report, Hartford Courant, 18 May 2025
With the stick end of the mascara wand, press down on the brow hairs to flatten them.
—Sophia Panych, Allure, 20 May 2025
The impact of A Pale View of Hills is blunted by a tendency to over-explain and flatten.
—Lovia Gyarkye, HollywoodReporter, 18 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for flatten
Joe Edwards
john Feng, MSNBC Newsweek, 22 May 2025
Chuck’s Dairy Bar, Rolling Fork, MS An EF4 tornado flattened Chuck’s in March 2023, but owner Tracy Harden didn’t stop.
—Staff Report, Hartford Courant, 18 May 2025
With the stick end of the mascara wand, press down on the brow hairs to flatten them.
—Sophia Panych, Allure, 20 May 2025
The impact of A Pale View of Hills is blunted by a tendency to over-explain and flatten.
—Lovia Gyarkye, HollywoodReporter, 18 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for flatten
Recent Examples of Synonyms for flatten
Verb
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Who doesn’t love a pair of leggings that sucks you in and smoothes your midsection?—
Elizabeth Mitchell Kadar,
Glamour,
2 June 2025
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The team was accused of stuffing and smoothing the seams of the rear attenuator, a part that is standard for all teams and therefore cannot be modified.—
Eduard Cauich,
Los Angeles Times,
25 May 2025
Verb
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Ryan Nugent-Hopkins buried a left circle wrister to cut the Panthers lead to 3-1, 3:33 into the second period.—
Jordan McPherson,
Miami Herald,
13 June 2025
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Many in Israel see such a confrontation as the best option—even though Iran’s nuclear facilities are spread across its territory, and some are buried deep underground, making any military campaign likely to be drawn-out, complicated, and hazardous.—
Arash Azizi,
The Atlantic,
12 June 2025
Verb
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But your brain might still seek patterns to overcome.—
Mark Travers,
Forbes.com,
10 June 2025
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Yet soon one is overcome by Charles Laughton’s creepy, convincing portrayal of Captain Bligh’s sadomasochism: most of the first fifteen minutes is taken up with floggings and other shipboard disciplining of half-naked men, shown in detail while Laughton looks on with long-lipped lasciviousness.—
Adam Gopnik,
New Yorker,
9 June 2025
Verb
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He’s compensated by throwing a ton of sliders, with just over a 40% usage rate.—
Tony Blengino,
Forbes.com,
10 June 2025
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Protesters continued moving through downtown, setting off fireworks and throwing objects at passing police vehicles.—
Rhona Tarrant,
CBS News,
9 June 2025
Verb
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The suspect, who sported pink hair and several face piercings, got into the 68-year-old victim’s cab around 6 p.m. on Sunday, May 4, pretending to be a customer, but instead whipped out a knife and demanded the victim’s property, according to cops.—
Roni Jacobson,
New York Daily News,
5 June 2025
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For example, defendants in this state are allowed to hire experts to lie and the defense can then whip the public into a frenzy by promoting the lies.—
Wendy Murphy,
Boston Herald,
4 June 2025
Verb
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Israel also bombed Iran’s main nuclear enrichment facility, Natanz.—
Paul Iddon,
Forbes.com,
13 June 2025
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Several of the Dodgers’ depth starters have bombed out, such as Landon Knack, Bobby Miller and Justin Wrobleski (who was originally scheduled to start Wednesday’s game).—
Fabian Ardaya,
New York Times,
11 June 2025
Verb
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Once again, the film is about the anguish of losing a loved one and the the desire to connect with the dead one more time, the annihilating madness of grief driving a person to unspeakable ends.—
Katie Walsh,
Boston Herald,
30 May 2025
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Apparently the Entity, aided once again by its human helpmate Gabriel (Esai Morales), is set to annihilate humankind in four days unless Ethan and Ethan alone can disable it.—
Peter Rainer,
Christian Science Monitor,
22 May 2025
Verb
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The algae is especially harmful to mangroves, which serve as nursery habitats, and can smother sea grasses and coral reefs, Lapointe said.—
Julia Jacobo,
ABC News,
5 June 2025
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The breakfast burrito, smothered in both red and green chile, could cure anything.—
Carrie Honaker,
Travel + Leisure,
5 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Flatten.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/flatten. Accessed 17 Jun. 2025.
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