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
Relevance
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
Verb
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That program is based on the notion that housing should be a prerequisite for people dealing with addictions or mental illness, not a reward for overcoming them.—
Jim Morrill,
Charlotte Observer,
11 Dec. 2025 -
That means overcoming Ella’s hostility and bridging the divide with her uncommunicative kid brother Casey (Spike Fearn), an MIT graduate who has become an agoraphobic shut-in since his breakup with beloved girlfriend Susan (Ayo Edebiri).—
David Rooney,
HollywoodReporter,
10 Dec. 2025
Verb
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After defeating fellow American Kyle Daukaus, fighter Bo Nickal praised the president.—
Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy,
USA Today,
15 June 2026
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Cardenas is currently running for re-election to the Board of Review, and won the Democratic primary in March, defeating former Friends of the Parks executive director Juanita Irizarry.—
Todd Feurer,
CBS News,
15 June 2026
Verb
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Here, Ruhian diversifies his skill set, killing people at a distance with a bow and arrow, which feels like cheating.—
Amy Nicholson,
Los Angeles Times,
11 June 2026
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But Mike Amante, a technology teacher in New Hartford, New York, said the training equipped him to show skeptics how AI could be beneficial to learning — not just for cheating.—
Tyler Kingkade,
NBC news,
9 June 2026
Verb
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Throughout the record, the image of Petras’ life in freefall recurs, giving the record a sense of hair-whipping freedom and heart-stopping urgency.—
Harry Tafoya,
Pitchfork,
2 June 2026
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The wind whipping at your hair?—
Parents,
Parents,
26 May 2026
Verb
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One of them is to raise the proportion of students mastering Math I – usually taken the freshman year of high school but also taken by some middle schoolers and older high school students.—
Rebecca Noel,
Charlotte Observer,
10 June 2026
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Nothing in tennis may be more difficult, because mastering it involves solving one of the great riddles of the sport.—
Matthew Futterman,
New York Times,
6 June 2026
Verb
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Ants, mosquitoes, ticks, termites, stinging insects, and house flies are the most common and costly summer pests.—
Sharon Wu,
USA Today,
16 June 2026
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If these stinging insects are nesting in your yard, look for the things that might be attracting wasps and learn how to keep them away.—
Karen Brewer Grossman,
Southern Living,
6 June 2026
Verb
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That came after Israel continued bombing Lebanon in defiance of Washington’s request days ago to stand down.—
Jason Ma,
Fortune,
7 June 2026
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Al Thawadi was in the Oval Office in September last year to watch Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu place a call to Qatar’s prime minister to apologize for bombing Doha.—
Dominic Dudley,
semafor.com,
25 May 2026
Verb
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Kane looked laboured and lost at Euro 2024 but England should be getting the best version of him in the coming weeks, which gives them a chance of beating any opponent.—
Jack Pitt-Brooke,
New York Times,
16 June 2026
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Renard led the team in the 2022 World Cup, famously beating Argentina 2-1 in the group stage.—
Andrew Greif,
NBC news,
16 June 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Skunking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/skunking. Accessed 18 Jun. 2026.
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