1
as in strangled
to be or cause to be killed by lack of breathable air
children should never play inside discarded appliances because they could become trapped and smother
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in stifled
to refrain from openly showing or uttering
he quickly smothered his inappropriate laughter at the funeral ceremony
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in whipped
to defeat by a large margin
the soccer team smothered their first few opponents in the championships, but lost narrowly in the final round
Synonyms & Similar Words
1
as in choked
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
2
as in muted
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of smothered
Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 13 Sep. 2025
The smotherer has been smothered.
—Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 10 Sep. 2025
Moody’s second field goal attempt, from 36 yards, got blocked when Julian Love quickly jumped past Matt Hennessy and smothered Moody’s attempt on its ascent.
—Cam Inman, Mercury News, 9 Sep. 2025
Later in the third, Fountain Valley lined up to punt again, but the punter wasn’t able to handle a bad snap and Marina’s Cameron Evans smothered the ball, giving the Vikings possession on the Barons 13.
—Lou Ponsi, Oc Register, 5 Sep. 2025
Bernie Sanders was smothered and locked out by the corporate Democrats and media.
—Kim Gordon, Rolling Stone, 3 Sep. 2025
The service is graceful and nimble, too; diners are taken care of without being smothered, while tablecloths are meticulously ironed out (right in front of guests) when tables turn.
—Katie Chang, Forbes.com, 31 Aug. 2025
Soldiers marched the victims to bomb craters at Kamianets-Podilskyi and turned machine guns on them; the victims were either shot or smothered.
—Lorenzino Estrada, AZCentral.com, 29 Aug. 2025
Luckily, once the daughter comes home for visits, Nemo gets smothered with love.
—Liz O'Connell, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Aug. 2025
Adjective
Tight end Zach Atkins, head on a swivel, astutely smothered the rock to preserve the score and push CU to within 16-13 before the extra point.
—Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 13 Sep. 2025
The smotherer has been smothered.
—Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 10 Sep. 2025
Moody’s second field goal attempt, from 36 yards, got blocked when Julian Love quickly jumped past Matt Hennessy and smothered Moody’s attempt on its ascent.
—Cam Inman, Mercury News, 9 Sep. 2025
Later in the third, Fountain Valley lined up to punt again, but the punter wasn’t able to handle a bad snap and Marina’s Cameron Evans smothered the ball, giving the Vikings possession on the Barons 13.
—Lou Ponsi, Oc Register, 5 Sep. 2025
Bernie Sanders was smothered and locked out by the corporate Democrats and media.
—Kim Gordon, Rolling Stone, 3 Sep. 2025
The service is graceful and nimble, too; diners are taken care of without being smothered, while tablecloths are meticulously ironed out (right in front of guests) when tables turn.
—Katie Chang, Forbes.com, 31 Aug. 2025
Soldiers marched the victims to bomb craters at Kamianets-Podilskyi and turned machine guns on them; the victims were either shot or smothered.
—Lorenzino Estrada, AZCentral.com, 29 Aug. 2025
Luckily, once the daughter comes home for visits, Nemo gets smothered with love.
—Liz O'Connell, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for smothered
Verb
-
Every February and September, when the event takes place, critics and showgoers bemoan that the entire affair is strangled by commercialism and limping toward irrelevance.—
Ana Karina Zatarain,
New Yorker,
19 Sep. 2025
-
Miner was tied up, beaten, strangled and stabbed.—
Tony Saavedra,
Oc Register,
17 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
The equity-grading scandal underscores a destructive phenomenon, which since the 1960s has increasingly stifled America’s can-do spirit with countless rules and regulations.—
Steve Forbes,
Forbes.com,
16 Sep. 2025
-
Woods Richardson, who allowed just two hits, outdueled Yankees starter Carlos Rodón, who completely stifled the Twins (66-84) the last time the two teams played.—
Betsy Helfand,
Twin Cities,
16 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
With notes of caramel, maple sugar, and whipped coconut, Ellis Brooklyn’s latest launch proves that sweet can still be sophisticated.—
Kimberly Wilson,
Essence,
12 Sep. 2025
-
As the winds whipped across the seaside links-style layout, the competition heated up.—
Tim Corlett,
Forbes.com,
11 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Markets were relatively muted on Friday.—
Jeff Marks,
CNBC,
12 Sep. 2025
-
The soft, muted tones of the jewels and beads used throughout the garment created an incandescent quality.—
Julia Teti,
Footwear News,
11 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
The same jury did, however, convict Chambers of battery and false imprisonment for other prior altercations in which prosecutors said Chambers pushed, grabbed and choked Dadkhah.—
City News Service,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
12 Sep. 2025
-
The air around the mop sink was choked by 20 flies.—
David J. Neal,
Miami Herald,
12 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Air defenses downed or suppressed 52 drones, the air force said, with the missile and six drones impacting across three locations.—
David Brennan,
ABC News,
14 Sep. 2025
-
Although Canon had mandated that the Cat's programmability be suppressed, the IAI team nevertheless maintained the ability to compute expressions, which Canon permitted as an extension of the editor metaphor.—
Cameron Kaiser,
ArsTechnica,
12 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Much of this prehistoric area is buried underwater today, but not all of it.—
Andrew Paul,
Popular Science,
18 Sep. 2025
-
Some of the settings are buried a bit in new menus.—
Eric Zeman,
PC Magazine,
17 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Since Ibsen wrote the suffocated aristocrat with her poison tongue into existence 135 years ago, titans of theatre have grappled with Gabler.—
Ben Jureidini,
Them.,
22 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Smothered.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/smothered. Accessed 21 Sep. 2025.
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