1
as in choked
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Dissimilar Words
2
as in muted
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
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
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 buried
to defeat by a large margin
the soccer team smothered their first few opponents in the championships, but lost narrowly in the final round
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Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of smothered
Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 31 Mar. 2026
Robust, malty, and melt-in-your-mouth tender, this smothered cabbage recipe will warm your soul and delight your tastebuds.
—Pableaux Johnson, Southern Living, 25 Nov. 2025
The smothered steak biscuit is available to order in-store and online through January 2026, a Bojangles spokesperson told CharlotteFive.
—Tanasia Kenney, Charlotte Observer, 7 Nov. 2025
Lauren Collins, New Yorker, 1 Apr. 2026
Griggs and his fellow expeditioners were walking through the aftermath of the 20th century’s most prolific act of volcanism — a 60-hour frenzy that smothered much of the Pacific Northwest in onyx snow.
—Quanta Magazine, 27 Mar. 2026
Smith squibbed a soft ground ball up the first-base line that Carlos Santana smothered beyond the bag.
—Bill Plunkett, Oc Register, 27 Mar. 2026
In the end, Carr’s efforts at the FCC stand to turn laws meant to protect free speech into opportunistic muzzles, leaving network TV smothered by a conversation its leadership spent too long avoiding.
—Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 25 Mar. 2026
Of course, the barbershop, where ball talk is real talk, and where the expectations around the Dodgers upcoming quest for a three-peat recently smothered me like a hot towel to the head.
—Assistant Sports Editor, Los Angeles Times, 23 Mar. 2026
Muddy floodwaters smothered vast stretches of Oahu’s North Shore, a community world-renowned for its big-wave surfing.
—Dallas Morning News, 22 Mar. 2026
Muddy floodwaters smothered vast stretches of Oahu’s North Shore, a community world-renowned for its big-wave surfing.
—Jennifer Sinco Kelleher, Chicago Tribune, 21 Mar. 2026
Muddy floodwaters smothered vast stretches of Oahu's North Shore, a community world-renowned for its big-wave surfing.
—ABC News, 20 Mar. 2026
Adjective
Otherwise, Rhoda picks the red rice; Laurence and Oscar pick the hoppin’ John; Anthony and Brittany pick collard greens; Duyen and Brandon pick the smothered cabbage; Justin and Sherry pick potato salad; and Jonathan and Jennifer pick the hoecakes.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 31 Mar. 2026
Robust, malty, and melt-in-your-mouth tender, this smothered cabbage recipe will warm your soul and delight your tastebuds.
—Pableaux Johnson, Southern Living, 25 Nov. 2025
The smothered steak biscuit is available to order in-store and online through January 2026, a Bojangles spokesperson told CharlotteFive.
—Tanasia Kenney, Charlotte Observer, 7 Nov. 2025
Verb
In 1976, Badinter joined the defense team of Patrick Henry, a sales representative who abducted a seven-year-old boy from school and smothered him to death.
—Lauren Collins, New Yorker, 1 Apr. 2026
Griggs and his fellow expeditioners were walking through the aftermath of the 20th century’s most prolific act of volcanism — a 60-hour frenzy that smothered much of the Pacific Northwest in onyx snow.
—Quanta Magazine, 27 Mar. 2026
Smith squibbed a soft ground ball up the first-base line that Carlos Santana smothered beyond the bag.
—Bill Plunkett, Oc Register, 27 Mar. 2026
In the end, Carr’s efforts at the FCC stand to turn laws meant to protect free speech into opportunistic muzzles, leaving network TV smothered by a conversation its leadership spent too long avoiding.
—Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 25 Mar. 2026
Of course, the barbershop, where ball talk is real talk, and where the expectations around the Dodgers upcoming quest for a three-peat recently smothered me like a hot towel to the head.
—Assistant Sports Editor, Los Angeles Times, 23 Mar. 2026
Muddy floodwaters smothered vast stretches of Oahu’s North Shore, a community world-renowned for its big-wave surfing.
—Dallas Morning News, 22 Mar. 2026
Muddy floodwaters smothered vast stretches of Oahu’s North Shore, a community world-renowned for its big-wave surfing.
—Jennifer Sinco Kelleher, Chicago Tribune, 21 Mar. 2026
Muddy floodwaters smothered vast stretches of Oahu's North Shore, a community world-renowned for its big-wave surfing.
—ABC News, 20 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for smothered
Adjective
-
San Franciscans who think Muni buses are always packed, or prone to crawl along choked streets, may find their views validated in a new slide presentation released by the Municipal Transportation Agency.—
Rachel Swan,
San Francisco Chronicle,
6 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
The cautious move in oil prices and relatively muted decline in Treasury yields suggest investors remain somewhat skeptical about an immediate end to the war.—
John Towfighi,
CNN Money,
31 Mar. 2026
-
Calm interiors in muted shades of sand and tan do not overpower the landscape, which is the star of the show.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
30 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
That’s a dynamic that strangled the labor market.—
Alicia Wallace,
CNN Money,
29 Mar. 2026
-
As of March 23, 2026, the global energy market is no longer governed by the invisible hand of economics; it is being strangled by the rigid, non-negotiable laws of engineering.—
Siddharth Misra,
Fortune,
28 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The Angels’ offense was stifled in a 10-inning, 3-1 loss to the Seattle Mariners during their home opener Friday night in front of 44,931 fans at Angel Stadium.—
Anthony Solorzano,
Los Angeles Times,
4 Apr. 2026
-
Academic journals struggled to put out issues, stifled by high printing costs and staff layoffs, scrounging for enough articles to fill their pages and paying subscribers to read them.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
1 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Crumbled sidewalks were replaced by planks that covered the sludge that concealed the ancient wood fretwork that buried the bones of the metropolis and its people.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
3 Apr. 2026
-
Neither the bull nor the cowboy gave in, and they were buried together, so the song goes.—
Josh Crutchmer,
Rolling Stone,
3 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
That conditional pick, acquired in August’s salary dump of Haywood Highsmith, effectively has become extinguished.—
Ira Winderman,
Sun Sentinel,
10 Mar. 2026
-
As the anti-ICE protests in Minneapolis recently showed, local demonstrations often become national news only once protesters’ lives have been imperilled or, worse, extinguished.—
Robert Moor,
New Yorker,
2 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
The slide appears to have involved a thick slab of soft snow breaking loose at a weak layer in the snowpack, the report said.—
Ethan Baron,
Mercury News,
4 Apr. 2026
-
Endowed not only with a privileged birthright but—unlike the actual princes over in England, who had weak chins and went bald young—the physical stature to match?—
Jeffrey Eugenides,
New Yorker,
4 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Nevertheless, higher gasoline prices have drowned out any hope of a rate cut among the chattering classes.—
Jim Cramer,
CNBC,
29 Mar. 2026
-
Those who yelled were drowned out by the chanting and singing.—
Fousia Abdullahi,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
28 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Smothered.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/smothered. Accessed 7 Apr. 2026.
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