smothering 1 of 2

adjective

Definition of smotheringnext
as in suffocating

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

smothering

2 of 2

verb

present participle of smother
1
as in strangling
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 stifling
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 burying
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

Examples Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for smothering
  1. suffocating
  2. stifling
  3. oppressive
  4. choking
  5. suppressing
  6. drowning
  7. swallowing
  8. beating
Adjective
  • What might feel supportive to one person could feel suffocating or unhelpful to another.
    Mark Travers, Forbes, 5 Sep. 2024
  • The goaltender finished with a career-high 19 saves, anchoring a suffocating defensive unit.
    Jacob Steinberg, Baltimore Sun, 5 Aug. 2024
Definition of suffocating
Verb
  • Fintech companies and their partners must collaborate closely with regulators to develop standards that protect consumers without stifling innovation.
    Zareef Hamid, Forbes, 3 Oct. 2024
  • These outdated practices are slowing down your teams, stifling progress and ultimately costing you money.
    Patrick Reynolds, Forbes, 2 Oct. 2024
Definition of stifling
Adjective
  • The concrete there takes, to me, a much more miserable, oppressive tone.
    Owen Davies, Curbed, 4 Nov. 2024
  • Boyer is seven years his junior, and Sell struggles to return Boyer’s oppressive flat serve, winning only the first game of the second set.
    Connor Sheets, Los Angeles Times, 30 Oct. 2024
Definition of oppressive
Verb
  • 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
  • The trial of Daniel Penny, the Marine veteran charged in the May 2023 choking death of a homeless man in a New York City subway car, is set to begin Monday with jury selection.
    Aaron Katersky, ABC News, 20 Oct. 2024
Definition of choking
Verb
  • The material achieves this by reacting strongly with the battery electrodes and suppressing processes that generate hydrogen.
    Ameya Paleja, Interesting Engineering, 21 Oct. 2024
  • Research has shown that suppressing emotional expression leads to poorer conversation quality and a reduced sense of connection.
    Mark Travers, Forbes, 20 Oct. 2024
Definition of suppressing
Verb
  • Majors can be more important that college name The data show that majors are often more important than institutions — and that community colleges and California State University campuses can deliver attractive postgraduate earnings to low-income students without drowning them in debt.
    Teresa Watanabe, Los Angeles Times, 3 Oct. 2024
  • From 2013 to 2022, drowning from rainfall flooding, not storm surge, was the top cause of tropical-cyclone deaths, according to data from the National Hurricane Center—and the shift is already having profound effects.
    Marina Koren, The Atlantic, 3 Oct. 2024
Definition of drowning
Verb
  • Epinephrine injections, or EpiPens, are reserved for people with severe allergic reactions — such as trouble breathing or swallowing — which can sometimes be life-threatening.
    Erika Edwards, NBC News, 3 Oct. 2024
  • Generally, those neurons control skeletal muscle activity, including walking, breathing, speaking and swallowing, according to the National Institutes of Health.
    Marlene Lenthang, NBC News, 3 Oct. 2024
Definition of swallowing
Verb
  • But beating the Eagles — on the road and in a short week — would certify Washington in a way the previous 10 weeks haven’t.
    Rohan Nadkarni, NBC News, 14 Nov. 2024
  • Video taken early Friday by Bender, a popular YouTube channel, showed a group of men, some wearing Maccabi fan colors, picking up pipes and boards from a construction site, then chasing and beating a man.
    Henry Austin, NBC News, 13 Nov. 2024
Definition of beating
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Thesaurus Entries Near smothering

smothered

smothering

smothers

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Cite this Entry

“Smothering.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/smothering. Accessed 21 Nov. 2024.

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More from Merriam-Webster on smothering

Nglish: Translation of smothering for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of smothering for Arabic Speakers

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