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
  • England had seen off Italy on the Tuesday, with Spain overcoming Germany on the Wednesday.
    — Michael Cox, New York Times, 14 July 2026
  • Exhibited for the first time outside of Sarajevo, the churning Socialist Realist homage invokes Eugène Delacroix’s Liberty Leading the People in figuring partisans heroically overcoming their would-be Nazi aggressors.
    — Ara H. Merjian, ARTnews.com, 10 July 2026
Definition of overcoming
Verb
  • Mbappe leads a strong French attack France reached the semi-finals after defeating Morocco 2-0, recording another clean sheet and reinforcing their status as the tournament favourites.
    — Abdul Rehman, New York Times, 14 July 2026
  • In November, Bill Clinton was elected, defeating Bush by almost six million votes, and the temperature around the arts dropped.
    — Louis Menand, New Yorker, 13 July 2026
Definition of defeating
Verb
  • Rather than being the abusive, manipulative and ultimately homicidal husband that prosecutors alleged, Sabatini described Millete as a tragic figure who was being emotionally and psychologically abused and gaslit by his cheating wife.
    — Alex Riggins, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 July 2026
  • After getting caught cheating during a crew battle by using members from other gaming crews, I was blacklisted by the 3DS community for a couple of months.
    — Kenneth Okeke, The Orlando Sentinel, 9 July 2026
Definition of cheating
Verb
  • Hanoi’s famous egg coffee—made by whipping egg yolks with sugar and condensed milk into a rich, velvety foam—was born during a time when fresh milk was scarce.
    — Susmita Baral, Travel + Leisure, 9 July 2026
  • Onstage, Shakira unleashed her inner rock star during the song, working the stage and the mic stand in a purple corset and matching fringe pants and whipping her lengthy curls like a weapon.
    — Melissa Ruggieri, USA Today, 7 July 2026
Definition of whipping
Verb
  • Few lawmakers matched Latvala in mastering the legislative arts.
    — Michael Van Sickler, Miami Herald, 9 July 2026
  • In truth, by mastering deal structure, sophisticated investors achieve asymmetric returns, where upsides significantly outweigh downsides.
    — Justin Donald, Forbes.com, 7 July 2026
Definition of mastering
Verb
  • In the Mark Dolan Show interview and in a stinging essay for the Daily Mail, Griffiths accused the king’s son of making false allegations against her.
    — Martha Ross, Mercury News, 9 July 2026
  • Significant stinging insect infestations like wasps and carpenter bees may also require a specialized plan that isn’t included in your general pest control service.
    — Alora Bopray, USA Today, 1 July 2026
Definition of stinging
Verb
  • French officials condemned the damage to the ancient monastery, comparing it to bombing Notre-Dame, while Ukrainian religious leaders called it a crime against humanity.
    — Mark Temnycky, Forbes.com, 25 June 2026
  • Another bad fix bombing out the moment it was most needed.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 22 June 2026
Definition of bombing
Verb
  • New York investment bank Goldman Sachs and commercial banking giant Bank of America also posted strong second quarter results, both beating Wall Street expectations.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 14 July 2026
  • The trailer then cuts to Branagh’s Nikolai rescuing his new American friend and beating up a group of men in a restaurant.
    — Aaron Couch, HollywoodReporter, 14 July 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.

Browse Nearby Words

skunked
skunking
skunks
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Cite this Entry

“Skunking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/skunking. Accessed 18 Jul. 2026.

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