as in to overwhelm
to subject to incapacitating emotional or mental stress
the news so whelmed them that they were stunned into silence
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Recent Examples of whelm
You’ll definitely be whelmed by the legit chemistry between Kat and Patrick, rebel teens who steal the show with their sweetness and dazzling wits.
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Angelique Jackson, Variety, 12 May 2023
Its reputation is built on the backs of 3-series gone by, as this is the first ever 3 to merely whelm us.
—Alexander Stoklosa, Car and Driver, 26 July 2017
Angelique Jackson, Variety, 12 May 2023
Its reputation is built on the backs of 3-series gone by, as this is the first ever 3 to merely whelm us.
—Alexander Stoklosa, Car and Driver, 26 July 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for whelm
Verb
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This lack of collaboration is untenable in the current reality where the sea of fast-moving, stealth attackers threatens to overwhelm the dike entirely.Jonathan Fischbein, Forbes, 14 Jan. 2025
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While liberals run the country from the Washington bureaucracy out to the grassroots, conservatives run the country by arousing the grassroots to overwhelm the resistance of Washington.Newt Gingrich, Orlando Sentinel, 11 Jan. 2025
Verb
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From Klay Thompson to Shaun Livingston to Ball, the NBA has been filled with stories of players overcoming tremendous physical and personal adversity to return to the court.Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 17 Jan. 2025
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Both quarterbacks, roommates at the Manning Passing Academy, overcame difficult, and certainly shocking, defeats on their way to leading Ohio State and Notre Dame, respectively, to Monday’s CFP national championship game in Atlanta.Tom Layberger, Forbes, 17 Jan. 2025
Verb
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What Happened in Hawaii? In August 2023, the Hawaiian town of Lahaina, on the northwest coast of the island of Maui, was devastated by a raging wildfire which killed 102 people and displaced thousands.Michael Gfoeller And David H. Rundell, Newsweek, 15 Jan. 2025
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Wildfires have devastated Southern California since early last week, leaving thousands of residents displaced, their homes reduced to ash and rubble.Ryan Faughnder, Los Angeles Times, 14 Jan. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Whelm.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/whelm. Accessed 21 Jan. 2025.
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