SMOLDER Synonyms: 103 Similar and Opposite Words

smolder

verb

variants or smoulder

Definition of smolder

as in to anger

to be excited or emotionally stirred up with anger She smoldered when first learning of her son's misbehavior at school, but had calmed down by the time he arrived home.

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Dissimilar Words

as in to blaze

to be on fire usually with smoke but few flames They look forward to those long summer nights telling stories beside a smoldering campfire.

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Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

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.

Recent Examples of smolder Pine trees coat the forest floor with mounds of flammable dead leaves that are springy underfoot but which can smolder long after a blaze. — ABC News, 31 July 2026 Nils Seval is a surf instructor, but this week he's been spraying down flareups that emerge from blazes still smoldering underground even in areas where big flames have been extinguished. — CBS News, 30 July 2026 Photographer Sergen Sezgin captured one such scene firsthand, as the moon rose over a smouldering hillside close to the Turkish city of Balıkesir, a few hundred miles south of Tekirdağ. — Anthony Wood, Space.com, 30 July 2026 When smoldering tensions over Texas flared into the Mexican-American War in 1846, the Bear Flag Revolt was launched. — Literary Hub, 29 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for smolder

Recent Examples of Synonyms for smolder

Verb

The White House had previously angered US ranchers by quadrupling low-tariff imports of Argentine beef to cool prices.

— Max Saltman, CNN Money, 22 Aug. 2026
During a joint practice last summer in Houston, Moehrig decked Texans wide receiver Xavier Hutchinson on a hard but clean hit that angered a few of Hutchinson’s teammates.

— Joseph Person, New York Times, 19 Aug. 2026

Definition of anger

Verb

The plight of immigrants is one of the defining moral issues of our time, and more and more big name musicians are following the trail Parton blazed so long ago.

— Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 26 Aug. 2026
That inspired her blazing recent mixtape, Eternal, which traffics in big beats, exclamatory vocals, and thoughtful lyrics about the pleasures of being in a moveable, danceable body.

— Stephen Deusner, SPIN, 25 Aug. 2026

Definition of blaze

Verb

The 2012 Olympic gold medalist was named to the NBA’s 75th anniversary team in 2021 after snarling, dunking and driving with full force every play, every night.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 18 Aug. 2026
The horns section snarled, the background vocalists riffed, and Olivia picked up multiple instruments herself – the tambourine, guitar, shakers, and the piano.

— Sidney Madden, VIBE.com, 17 Aug. 2026

Definition of snarl

Verb

Fans of Dolly Parton have erected a memorial at the legendary singer-songwriter’s star on Nashville’s Music City Walk of Fame, placing flowers, cards and candles that continue to burn into the morning hours.

— Sophie Tanno, CNN Money, 25 Aug. 2026
At least five structures are known to have been burned, and additional damage assessments are expected to be conducted later Tuesday today.

— Harriet Ramos, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 25 Aug. 2026

Definition of burn

Verb

Their sound was described as a hybrid mixing elements of rock, blues and funk into a steaming-hot Houston stew.

— CBS News, CBS News, 18 Aug. 2026
Brighter landscape shots with more complicated colors, however, like a steaming blue hot spring surrounded by yellow-red sand and green trees, don’t look nearly as vibrant as the lush greens and blues of the Planet Earth II footage.

— Will Greenwald, PC Magazine, 17 Aug. 2026

Definition of steam

Verb

Those who see them can snap a photo of the spider and submit a report through Joro Watch's website, the EDDMapS app or the iNaturalist app, according to Joro Watch.

— Julia Gomez, USA Today, 21 Aug. 2026
Los Angeles snapped a 0-3-3 winless skid and won for the first time since beating the Sounders 2-0 in Seattle on May 16.

— CBS News, CBS News, 20 Aug. 2026

Definition of snap

Verb

For a bold and vibrant fall hair transformation, consider colors with warm tones that add depth and glow to your look.

— Alyssa Rotunno, InStyle, 27 Aug. 2026
On Broadway, these glow like amber beacons, alas offering a respite from the darkness that best serves what Holloway and Barrett are trying to do.

— Chris Jones, New York Daily News, 26 Aug. 2026

Definition of glow

Browse Nearby Words

smoky

smolder

smoldered

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Cite this Entry

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“Smolder.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/smolder. Accessed 29 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of smolder

verb

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