muffle

verb

muf·​fle ˈmə-fəl 

muffled; muffling ˈmə-f(ə-)liŋ 

transitive verb

1

: to wrap up so as to conceal or protect : envelop

2

obsolete : blindfold

3

a

: to wrap or pad with something to dull the sound

muffle the oarlocks

b

: to deaden the sound of

4

: keep down, suppress

muffled her anger

Synonyms

• mute
• stifle

Examples of muffle in a Sentence

They tried to muffle the noise.

I could hear their muffled voices from the next room.

Recent Examples on the Web

They are set in Midwestern towns and incline toward domestic scenes that muffle the world a bit. —Lauren Michele Jackson, New Yorker, 5 Oct. 2025

Riley said that would muffle sound produced by the data center. —Matthew Adams, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 29 Sep. 2025

This is the perfect opportunity for the Business Roundtable to advocate for its members in a forceful, direct challenge to the administration, but it has been perplexingly muffled. —Jason Ma, Fortune, 21 Sep. 2025

That should tug on our hearts since Willa’s worth caring for, but the emotional heft between dad and daughter gets muffled since there’s just not enough oxygen given to those scenes. —Randy Myers, Mercury News, 19 Sep. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English muflen

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for muffle

• duffel
• duffle
• ruffle
• scuffle
• shuffle
• truffle
• reshuffle

Kids Definition

muffle

verb

muf·​fle ˈməf-əl 

muffled; muffling ˈməf-(ə-)liŋ 

1

: to wrap up so as to conceal or protect

2

: to deaden the sound of

muffle a cry