skunking

verb

present participle of skunk
1
as in overcoming
to defeat by a large margin we ended up skunking them, as our goalie was able to prevent the other team from scoring a single goal

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
as in defeating
to achieve a victory over our football team consistently skunks our traditional rivals Thanksgiving after Thanksgiving

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in cheating
to rob by the use of trickery or threats unwilling to let suppliers skunk him, the restaurant owner inspected every shipment before signing off on it

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for skunking
  1. overcoming
  2. defeating
  3. cheating
  4. whipping
  5. mastering
  6. stinging
  7. bombing
  8. beating
Verb
  • Others discussed overcoming the initial awkwardness of the work and finding satisfaction in helping doctors become more competent and compassionate.
    — Daniel Hunt, Sacbee.com, 18 Oct. 2026
  • These productions focused on accessibility, particularly for deaf and hard-of-hearing audiences, rather than overcoming language barriers.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 17 Oct. 2026
Definition of overcoming
Verb
  • Republican Bo French, who previously chaired the Tarrant County GOP, faces Democrat Jon Rosenthal after defeating incumbent Jim Wright in a May Republican primary runoff for the state agency that regulates Texas’ oil and gas industry.
    — Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 18 Oct. 2026
  • There’s nothing more important than defeating his pathetic opponent, Mike Collins.
    — NBC news, NBC news, 18 Oct. 2026
Definition of defeating
Verb
  • The attack on Hugging Face was then part of an elaborate attempt to evade being caught cheating.
    — Beatrice Nolan, Fortune, 16 Oct. 2026
  • Educators raise concerns about cognitive offloading and easy access to cheating.
    — Kiryn Hoffman, Forbes.com, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of cheating
Verb
  • Now imagine whipping your phone out after work, telling the world about it, and landing a brand deal worth $10K or more.
    — Orianna Rosa Royle, Fortune, 15 Oct. 2026
  • Now imagine the same hot and dry conditions, but with the Santa Anas whipping at 40 miles an hour.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of whipping
Verb
  • Print out every word a child hears on the way to mastering language and the stack stands about as tall as a house.
    — Charles Yeomans, Forbes.com, 16 Oct. 2026
  • How to Prevent Sauces From Breaking When mastering a good sauce, there are a few key factors to keep in mind.
    — Laura Manzano, Martha Stewart, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of mastering
Verb
  • That money has been transformed into frequent online and television ads either stinging or lauding the two candidates.
    — John Aguilar, Denver Post, 7 Oct. 2026
  • Indy struggled against Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens in its season opener, then took a stinging 33-30 overtime loss to the Kansas City Chiefs.
    — Elise Devlin, New York Times, 5 Oct. 2026
Definition of stinging
Verb
  • Russia has been bombing Ukraine’s Black Sea ports, forcing Ukraine to rely increasingly on river ports on the Danube and shipping routes close to the coasts of NATO members Bulgaria and Romania.
    — Reuters, NBC news, 13 Oct. 2026
  • The United States began bombing Iran on February 28 with the goal of destroying the country’s nuclear program, its missile program, and even its government, only to fail spectacularly at each objective.
    — Mohammad Ayatollahi Tabaar, Foreign Affairs, 1 Oct. 2026
Definition of bombing
Verb
  • Prosecutors claimed Davis acted out of revenge for Shakur and his crew previously beating on Orlando Anderson, Davis’ nephew.
    — Dominic Patten, Deadline, 13 Oct. 2026
  • Heavy winds, beating sun and wide, open spaces give the area plentiful access to cheap green energy and land.
    — Simone McCarthy, CNN Money, 13 Oct. 2026
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.

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skunked
skunking
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Cite this Entry

“Skunking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/skunking. Accessed 21 Oct. 2026.

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