smoldered

verb

variants or smouldered
past tense of smolder
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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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 smoldered Prosecutors say the blaze allegedly started by Rinderknecht smoldered underground for days before exploding into the wildfire that killed 12 people, destroyed thousands of structures across Los Angeles County, and burned more than 23,000 acres. — Kaelan Deese, The Washington Examiner, 26 June 2026 Prosecutors said the Lachman fire smoldered underground for a week before exploding into the deadly Palisades fire. — Brittny Mejia, Los Angeles Times, 25 June 2026 In 2024, a Lineage facility in Washington state caught fire and smoldered for two months, Northwest Public Broadcasting reported. — Holly Yan, CNN Money, 22 June 2026 More specifically, the ’90s chemistry queen Rene Russo, who has smoldered onscreen with everyone from Clint Eastwood and Mel Gibson to Pierce Brosnan and John Travolta. — Jesse Hassenger, Entertainment Weekly, 18 June 2026 Smith beamed a luminous smile as Brosnan smoldered for the camera on the red carpet in 1995. — John Russell, PEOPLE, 16 May 2026 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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for smoldered
  1. snarled
  2. blazed
  3. angered
  4. burned
  5. snapped
  6. glowed
  7. steamed
  8. flickered
Verb
  • Meanwhile, the tech industry's multitrillion-dollar spending spree on data centers and AI infrastructure has snarled supply chains.
    — Matt Peterson,Kate Rooney, CNBC, 12 Aug. 2026
  • After the upheaval of the coronavirus pandemic, followed by the writers’ and actors’ strikes that snarled the production pipeline, many industry observers feared that Zoomers were a lost demographic.
    — Sophia Nguyen, The Atlantic, 2 Aug. 2026
Definition of snarled
Verb
  • Lead singer and guitarist Marisa Dabice blazed through 10 punky tracks, which, given her strong voice and hooky songwriting, surely converted some early arrivals.
    — William Earl, Variety, 14 Aug. 2026
  • There would still cheap, B-movie versions of original hits, with straight-to-video sequels becoming an increasingly viable way to cash in the emerging home video market, but Coppola blazed a different trail for a studio’s biggest hits.
    — Chris O'Falt, IndieWire, 14 Aug. 2026
Definition of blazed
Verb
  • The two women who won jury trials in their lawsuits against the county are angered that the county has opted to appeal.
    — Sean Emery, Oc Register, 12 Aug. 2026
  • Public backlash is prompting San Diego to reopen 13 restrooms in Mission Bay Park this Friday after a six-week closure during the heart of summer that angered city residents and tourists.
    — David Garrick, San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 Aug. 2026
Definition of angered
Verb
  • Since the first attack July 18 in Elektrostal, just east of Moscow, and in the southwestern Tambov region, Wildberries depots burned one after another in massive fires that flooded social media.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 17 Aug. 2026
  • In April, the Federal Emergency Management Agency denied Colorado’s appeal for a similar declaration for the Lee and Elk fires, which burned last summer in the northwest corner of the state, and for flooding on the Western Slope.
    — Noelle Phillips, Denver Post, 16 Aug. 2026
Definition of burned
Verb
  • Elly De La Cruz drove in automatic runner Matt McLain with a sacrifice fly in the top of the 10th inning as the Cincinnati Reds snapped a three-game skid with a 5-4 comeback win over the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday night.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 12 Aug. 2026
  • Saturday’s win at Fenway Park snapped the A’s nine-game losing streak, their second such streak in a month, and the team won the series with another victory on Sunday.
    — Chris Biderman, Sacbee.com, 11 Aug. 2026
Definition of snapped
Verb
  • As the bartender quieted whatever terrible hair-metal mixtape had been playing over the house PA, and the lights glowed red on the stage, Ryan was trying to create the illusion of a behind-the-curtain, big-stage, rock star entrance.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 7 Aug. 2026
  • String lights glowed overhead as the San Gabriel Mountains went dark behind them.
    — David Hochman, Forbes.com, 29 July 2026
Definition of glowed
Verb
  • There’s arguably nothing more annoying than rushing out the door to an event, only to realize your dress is wrinkled and needs to be steamed.
    — Ali Faccenda, InStyle, 23 July 2026
  • Manila clams are woven into Italian cuisine, tossed in pasta or served steamed.
    — Kasha Patel, CNN Money, 18 July 2026
Definition of steamed
Verb
  • The neon lights began to move about briskly, like gleaming whirligig beetles, and the lights on the advertising tower closest to the stadium flickered across the Squirrel-brand margarine ad.
    — Cynthia Zarin, Harpers Magazine, 4 Aug. 2026
  • Above the roofs, like an alien protrusion, the lights on a faraway derrick flickered.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 3 Aug. 2026
Definition of flickered

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smolder
smoldered
smoldering
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Cite this Entry

“Smoldered.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/smoldered. Accessed 18 Aug. 2026.

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Nglish: Translation of smoldered for Spanish Speakers

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