dumbing

present participle of dumb
as in shushing
to stop the noise or speech of the terrible news dumbed her for a long moment, and then she burst into tears

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for dumbing
Verb
  • Trae Young won Madison Square Garden’s undying enmity in the 2021 playoffs for the Atlanta Hawks, punctuating game-breaking shots by shushing the crowd or bowing to the fans and waving goodbye.
    Leah Asmelash, CNN Money, 9 June 2026
  • Wine country with kids in tow doesn’t have to mean a stressful afternoon of shushing and screen time.
    Lauren Schuster, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 3 June 2026
Verb
  • That protein keeps the seals between your gut cells closed by silencing the genes that would otherwise loosen them.
    Ryan Brennan, Sacbee.com, 24 June 2026
  • Psychologists call the underlying habit self-silencing.
    Mark Travers, Forbes.com, 20 June 2026
Verb
  • But the field has struggled to figure out a means of delivering RNA-muting molecules into organs and tissues beyond the liver, which has limited their reach.
    Elaine Chen, STAT, 9 June 2026
  • Historians have written about how the widespread fear and conformity of these periods reshaped American society in enduring ways, including the destruction of progressive political movements and both delaying and muting the Civil Rights Movement itself.
    Bruce Schneier, The Conversation, 27 May 2026
Verb
  • There are a lot of ways to declutter out there—the pile method and the discernment method are two of them, and now, everyone’s hushing their house.
    Quincy Bulin, Southern Living, 28 Dec. 2025
  • Unfortunately, the austerity and elegance of the downstairs dining room acts as a dampener, hushing the salad’s brashness and sapping much of the fun.
    Helen Rosner, New Yorker, 14 Dec. 2025
Verb
  • However, the Rams’ acquisition of Garrett puts a team that was firmly a Super Bowl favorite back in the conversation for a 2026 Super Bowl run, quieting the doubters who rose after the 2026 NFL Draft.
    Gladys Louise Tyler, Forbes.com, 6 June 2026
  • The company says the device supports sleep by lowering cortisol within minutes, slowing the heart, quieting racing thoughts and shifting users into parasympathetic mode.
    Samantha Agate, Kansas City Star, 4 June 2026
Verb
  • Residents gathered Friday in Piute County as the Cottonwood Fire pushed closer, with flames visible in the distance and smoke settling across the valley, to hear updates and discuss emergency response plans, CNN affiliate KSTU reported.
    Alaa Elassar, CNN Money, 27 June 2026
  • Breezy and dry conditions will continue across this portion of the West this weekend; however, cooler temperatures will be settling in.
    Kyle Reiman, ABC News, 27 June 2026
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.

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Cite this Entry

“Dumbing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dumbing. Accessed 28 Jun. 2026.

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