1
as in to strangle
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
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to stifle
to refrain from openly showing or uttering
he quickly smothered his inappropriate laughter at the funeral ceremony
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to bury
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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Examples Sentences
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Recent Examples of smother
Danny Emerman, The Mercury News, 25 Oct. 2024
Similarly, a buildup of leaves on the lawn can smother it.
—Marni Jameson, arkansasonline.com, 28 Sep. 2024
Steven Goff, Washington Post, 15 July 2024
Sediment smothers underwater life and clouds waters, preventing sunlight from reaching plants and animals, destroying ecosystems.
—Scott Dance, Washington Post, 29 June 2024
See all Example Sentences for smother 
Verb
Behind Hield’s outburst, the Warriors (2-0) smothered Utah, 127-86, with relentless defense and rebounding.
—Danny Emerman, The Mercury News, 25 Oct. 2024
Similarly, a buildup of leaves on the lawn can smother it.
—Marni Jameson, arkansasonline.com, 28 Sep. 2024
Noun
Vargas thwarted Argentina again, making a diving save to smother Nicolás González’s one-timer.
—Steven Goff, Washington Post, 15 July 2024
Sediment smothers underwater life and clouds waters, preventing sunlight from reaching plants and animals, destroying ecosystems.
—Scott Dance, Washington Post, 29 June 2024
See all Example Sentences for smother
Recent Examples of Synonyms for smother
Verb
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Jamie Busch allegedly strangled her sister in her home during an altercation between 4:50 p.m. and 11:59 on October 8.Nina Turner, Newsweek, 29 Oct. 2024
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She’d been stripped naked and strangled with her own stockings, with a bite mark on her breast.Laura Bradley, Vulture, 18 Oct. 2024
Verb
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Junior linebacker Jared Ibarra and senior safety Emmanuel El Shaddai Hill highlight a defense capable of stifling top attacks.Matt Schubert, The Denver Post, 6 Nov. 2024
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To simply cut these people with abandon (and replace others with political appointees) could have severe consequences, such as stifling disaster response and increasing the likelihood of corruption.Charlie Warzel, The Atlantic, 4 Nov. 2024
Verb
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Some family members choose to bury their heads in the sand and blame the victim rather than the offender.Harriette Cole, The Mercury News, 12 Nov. 2024
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Daniel Hunter, founder of Choose Democracy, an organization that provides resources to help Americans prepare for an undemocratic power grab, says his experience in activism has taught him that the solution isn’t to bury your head in the sand or jump to the worst-case scenario.Allie Volpe, Vox, 11 Nov. 2024
Noun
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Sitting around: The other culprit is letting that topping sit around for too long after baking but before serving, as the steam emanating from the casserole will kill that crunch.Jill Schildhouse, Southern Living, 5 Nov. 2024
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Daniel Alvarez is in the business of finding solutions to reduce their waste steam and lower costs.Austin Corona, The Arizona Republic, 4 Nov. 2024
Verb
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Armed with that information, off-roading is a lot less likely to be marred by choking, toxic smoke that comes along with dangerous levels of combustion if users know which areas to avoid.Kristin Shaw, Popular Science, 14 Nov. 2024
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He is accused of fatally choking 30-year-old Jordan Neely on a New York City subway in 2023.David Faris, Newsweek, 4 Nov. 2024
Verb
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Some voters may view restrictions on electioneering as suppressing their First Amendment rights, Huefner noted.Meredith Deliso, ABC News, 3 Nov. 2024
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At the same time, some argue that voter intimidation implies that someone is trying to suppress voting, not encourage it.Frank Witsil, Detroit Free Press, 2 Nov. 2024
Verb
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However, the article notes this training will likely be easier for happy chasers because dogs who are angry or fearful bee-chasers have stronger emotions to overcome.Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 5 Nov. 2024
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To overcome this, build self-awareness and emotional intelligence internally first.Expert Panel®, Forbes, 5 Nov. 2024
Noun
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As for other differences between the plans, Entertainment includes more than 75 channels, the ability to stream on unlimited devices in your home, unlimited cloud DVR storage, and a special offer on premium channels.Monica Mercuri, StyleCaster, 5 Nov. 2024
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Its infrared sensors were able to peer past large clouds of dust and gas to capture a grand spectacle of creation, a cluster of blue stars erupting into being.Ross Andersen, The Atlantic, 5 Nov. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near smother
Cite this Entry
“Smother.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/smother. Accessed 21 Nov. 2024.
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