1
as in shattering
to cause to break with violence and much noise
the drunken guest deliberately smashed a glass against the brick fireplace
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in demolishing
to cause to break open or into pieces by or as if by an explosive
the firecracker smashed the clay pot
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in destroying
to bring to a complete end the physical soundness, existence, or usefulness of
the invading troops smashed the resistance and went on to conquer the country
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in bumping
to come into usually forceful contact with something
we nearly smashed into each other on the skating rink
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in striking
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
as in hammering
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of smashing
Celia Wren, Washington Post, 14 Mar. 2023
The program, in many respects, has been a smashing success.
—Tom Benning, Dallas News, 1 May 2020
Anthony Lane, New Yorker, 8 Sep. 2025
Jem Aswad, Variety, 2 Oct. 2025
Brown climbed the ladder to haul in a pass over the middle from Madsen, beating his defender in the air acrobatically before smashing into the end zone turf for the catch and a 33-14 lead.
—Shaun Goodwin, Idaho Statesman, 28 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for smashing
Verb
Director Zi Alikhan keeps the proceedings lively, not least with a smashing dance sequence choreographed by Ambika Raina, also the show’s associate director.
—Celia Wren, Washington Post, 14 Mar. 2023
The program, in many respects, has been a smashing success.
—Tom Benning, Dallas News, 1 May 2020
Adjective
Most of the smashing is done by Tamburlaine, a Scythian shepherd by birth, who rises to the peaks of power, lays waste to one kingdom after another, and has the temerity, at the climax of Part 1, not to die.
—Anthony Lane, New Yorker, 8 Sep. 2025
Noun
The Beck-Page Yardbirds appear in that film, miming to the song at a rock club in a performance that culminates with Beck smashing his guitar.
—Jem Aswad, Variety, 2 Oct. 2025
Brown climbed the ladder to haul in a pass over the middle from Madsen, beating his defender in the air acrobatically before smashing into the end zone turf for the catch and a 33-14 lead.
—Shaun Goodwin, Idaho Statesman, 28 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for smashing
Recent Examples of Synonyms for smashing
Verb
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For leftovers, there’s a set of glass Pyrex containers that can be placed in the freezer or microwave with no worries about shattering.—
Shea Simmons,
Southern Living,
5 Oct. 2025
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So to decide whether to marry or move on for good, one person issues an ultimatum, kicking off a potentially relationship-shattering experiment.—
Peter White,
Deadline,
2 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Tens of thousands have been fleeing the city, which has seen Israel demolishing high-rise buildings.—
Caitlin Danaher,
CNN Money,
20 Sep. 2025
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Preservationists stepped in to keep the company from its standard practice of demolishing a vacant building.—
Cheryl V. Jackson,
IndyStar,
18 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Since then, the Internet has gone about its immemorial business of destroying all incumbent forms of media; not content with vampirizing print, the digital space began sucking the life from pay-TV a dozen years ago.—
Anthony Crupi,
Sportico.com,
3 Oct. 2025
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Critics say returning the company without meaningful payment undercuts accountability and the compensatory purpose of the judgments; others note trustees and Judge Lopez have to avoid value-destroying, prolonged processes.—
Robert Alexander,
MSNBC Newsweek,
3 Oct. 2025
Verb
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This boundary-breaking dance drama follows Baby (Jennifer Grey) and Johnny (Patrick Swayze) in a wrong-side-of-the-tracks romantic entanglement that all starts with a rousing night of bumping and grinding.—
Madeleine Janz,
PEOPLE,
30 Sep. 2025
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Only 11% of drivers in the study admitted to violent road rage behaviors in the last year, such as bumping other cars on purpose or confronting other drivers.—
Andrea Margolis,
FOXNews.com,
24 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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The side’s most striking feature, according to most reports from the time, was therefore their relative lack of brutality.—
Michael Cox,
New York Times,
5 Oct. 2025
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This striking turtleneck sweater is a must.—
Clara McMahon,
PEOPLE,
4 Oct. 2025
Noun
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The 4-0 hammering in France has seen Ajax’s chance of elimination before the knockout stage rise to 85 per cent.—
Anantaajith Raghuraman,
New York Times,
2 Oct. 2025
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There and at Jebel Misma, the team found stone-hammering tools left behind by the artists in layers of sediment dating back 12,000 years.—
Martin J. Kernan,
Scientific American,
30 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Equating your value to your bank account, or blowing cash to feel validated.—
Dossé-Via Trenou,
Refinery29,
5 Oct. 2025
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He and his apprentices host glass- blowing classes on Fridays and Saturdays (reservation required), when guests can make anything from a bowl to a tumbler to an ornament.—
Tara Massouleh McCay,
Southern Living,
4 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Or pursue the rancid criminal element across the galaxy as a bounty hunter, making your fortune by ruining bad guys' lives.—
Alan Bradley,
Space.com,
7 Oct. 2025
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So much so that the official Carol Burnett Show YouTube channel has several 15-minute salutes of Burnett, Harvey Korman, Tim Conway, Vicki Lawrence, and others busting up and ruining the bit.—
Jordan Hoffman,
Entertainment Weekly,
5 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Smashing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/smashing. Accessed 8 Oct. 2025.
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