variants
or smouldered
1
as in snarled
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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2
as in blazed
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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Recent Examples of smoldered
Crews work to uncover and cool unused coal which has smoldered for 20 years near Florence, Colorado.
—
Logan Smith, CBS News, 11 Apr. 2026
Her decision to stop the publication of a 60 Minutes piece about a Salvadoran prison that had been cleared by others at the network sparked an internal fire that smoldered for weeks until the story eventually aired.
—Max Tani, semafor.com, 30 Mar. 2026
For about a week, the fire smoldered at low intensity, doing its work on a patch of roughly 120 acres.
—New York Times, 16 Mar. 2026
The devices smoldered but did not explode.
—Daily News Staff, New York Daily News, 9 Mar. 2026
Oil depots in Tehran smoldered following overnight strikes by Israel.
—Alex Veiga, Los Angeles Times, 9 Mar. 2026
Oil depots in Tehran smoldered following overnight strikes by Israel.
—Elaine Kurtenbach, Chicago Tribune, 8 Mar. 2026
Regional anger grows over strikes The war toll on civilian targets grew as Bahrain accused Iran of striking a desalination plant vital to drinking water supplies, and oil depots in Tehran smoldered following overnight Israeli strikes.
—Dallas Morning News, 8 Mar. 2026
The Griselda actress smoldered in a bright red strapless gown with a plunging sweetheart neckline, a corset-style bodice, and a form-fitting silhouette that subtly flared out into a mermaid design around her knees.
—Lara Walsh, InStyle, 12 Jan. 2026
Logan Smith, CBS News, 11 Apr. 2026
Her decision to stop the publication of a 60 Minutes piece about a Salvadoran prison that had been cleared by others at the network sparked an internal fire that smoldered for weeks until the story eventually aired.
—Max Tani, semafor.com, 30 Mar. 2026
For about a week, the fire smoldered at low intensity, doing its work on a patch of roughly 120 acres.
—New York Times, 16 Mar. 2026
The devices smoldered but did not explode.
—Daily News Staff, New York Daily News, 9 Mar. 2026
Oil depots in Tehran smoldered following overnight strikes by Israel.
—Alex Veiga, Los Angeles Times, 9 Mar. 2026
Oil depots in Tehran smoldered following overnight strikes by Israel.
—Elaine Kurtenbach, Chicago Tribune, 8 Mar. 2026
Regional anger grows over strikes The war toll on civilian targets grew as Bahrain accused Iran of striking a desalination plant vital to drinking water supplies, and oil depots in Tehran smoldered following overnight Israeli strikes.
—Dallas Morning News, 8 Mar. 2026
The Griselda actress smoldered in a bright red strapless gown with a plunging sweetheart neckline, a corset-style bodice, and a form-fitting silhouette that subtly flared out into a mermaid design around her knees.
—Lara Walsh, InStyle, 12 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for smoldered
Verb
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Crashes involving about 70 vehicles snarled a section of a snowy Colorado highway and sent eight people to the hospital.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
14 Apr. 2026
-
Israel launched an aerial barrage against Hezbollah in Lebanon, and shipping traffic in the Strait of Hormuz remains snarled.—
Susannah George,
Washington Post,
10 Apr. 2026
Verb
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In the 21st century, Jason's daughter Sadie returns to Brownsville as a journalist, determined to unravel the mystery of what happened decades earlier on the night the buildings blazed.—
Danielle Parker,
CBS News,
14 Apr. 2026
-
And by 1999, the entire trail, blazed with blue markings, was complete.—
Alex Kuffner,
The Providence Journal,
6 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Seoul — South Korea’s president has angered the Israeli government by sharing video on social media from 2024 that shows Israeli soldiers pushing a body off a building in the occupied West Bank.—
Gawon Bae,
CNN Money,
13 Apr. 2026
-
The mayor's threat to raise property taxes unless Albany agrees to tax the rich angered City Council Speaker Julie Menin.—
Marcia Kramer,
CBS News,
10 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The fires burned most of Nob Hill where the railroad barons lived.—
Kurt Snibbe,
Oc Register,
17 Apr. 2026
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Yet the Baywatch blunder still prompted a scorching Substack post from Bass’ opponent Spencer Pratt, the reality TV veteran turned Internet influencer who, after the Pacific Palisades wildfire burned his home, is running as an anti-establishment outsider with a focus on government negligence.—
Gary Baum,
HollywoodReporter,
17 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Michael Amadio, Shane Pinto on the power play, and Fabian Zetterlund all scored in a roughly seven-minute span of the second period for the Senators, who had their four game win streak snapped.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
12 Apr. 2026
-
That snapped a Chicago scoreless streak that lasted 21 2/3 innings.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
12 Apr. 2026
Verb
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For her rare public outing, the teen—whom Beyoncé shares with husband Jay-Z—glowed in a luminous white New Arrivals minidress featuring a strapless design and delicate ruching.—
Lara Walsh,
InStyle,
9 Apr. 2026
-
Inside, there was a puzzling, almost magical blue powder that glowed in the dark.—
Rafa Sales Ross,
Variety,
6 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
And yet somehow they've been relegated to the back of the plate for years, steamed into submission and served without fanfare.—
Maggie Meyer Glisan,
Better Homes & Gardens,
8 Apr. 2026
-
Look for whole grains, fruits and vegetables, and words like steamed, baked, poached, roasted, broiled or grilled.—
Dr. Sarah Kinsella,
Boston Herald,
5 Apr. 2026
Verb
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This world flickered into view between 1933 and 1943, a decade when the US government treated art as a public resource rather than a private luxury.—
John P. Murphy,
ARTnews.com,
5 Apr. 2026
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Delicate little needles in the windows that flickered up and then sifted back down.—
Caleb Crain,
Harpers Magazine,
24 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Smoldered.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/smoldered. Accessed 20 Apr. 2026.
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