1
as in choked
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2
as in muted
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Dissimilar Words
1
as in strangled
to be or cause to be killed by lack of breathable air
children should never play inside discarded appliances because they could become trapped and smother
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in stifled
to refrain from openly showing or uttering
he quickly smothered his inappropriate laughter at the funeral ceremony
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in buried
to defeat by a large margin
the soccer team smothered their first few opponents in the championships, but lost narrowly in the final round
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of smothered
Katelyn Umholtz, Kansas City Star, 27 May 2026
Breakfast is a treat, with made-from-scratch English muffins and housemade jams, plus heartier items like a smothered breakfast burrito.
—Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 23 Apr. 2026
Otherwise, Rhoda picks the red rice; Laurence and Oscar pick the hoppin’ John; Anthony and Brittany pick collard greens; Duyen and Brandon pick the smothered cabbage; Justin and Sherry pick potato salad; and Jonathan and Jennifer pick the hoecakes.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 31 Mar. 2026
Robust, malty, and melt-in-your-mouth tender, this smothered cabbage recipe will warm your soul and delight your tastebuds.
—Pableaux Johnson, Southern Living, 25 Nov. 2025
The smothered steak biscuit is available to order in-store and online through January 2026, a Bojangles spokesperson told CharlotteFive.
—Tanasia Kenney, Charlotte Observer, 7 Nov. 2025
William Guillory, New York Times, 31 May 2026
The best slice pizza, according to the guide, comes from L’Industrie Pizzeria in New York, which is known for a slice smothered in Burrata.
—Connie Ogle
may 29, Miami Herald, 29 May 2026
Even Donovan Mitchell’s 31-point performance wasn’t enough to keep Cleveland competitive as the Knicks’ defense smothered the Cavaliers’ perimeter attack for the fourth straight game.
—Alejandro Avila, FOXNews.com, 26 May 2026
The reddish-brown mud that smothered Bok Kongphan's Hawaii farm has hardened in the tropical sun.
—ABC News, 16 May 2026
Moments later, Harris pressed again, but Marcinkowski smothered the shot at point-blank range to keep the visitors’ halftime deficit at 2-0.
—Daily News, 14 May 2026
Before this, in the mid 20th century, a standard cut of meat at mealtimes was a pork loin or beef steak, smothered in cream sauce.
—Rebecca Firkser, Bon Appetit Magazine, 14 May 2026
Through the first three games of the series, the Golden Knights smothered Anaheim’s power play, killing all 11 penalties Vegas took in the series.
—Los Angeles Times, 11 May 2026
On the other hand, some volcanoes prefer to ambush us, even when smothered in instrumentation.
—Quanta Magazine, 8 May 2026
Adjective
Outside of smothered biscuit sandwiches, District Biskuits also sells mac and cheese, chicken tenders with various dipping sauces, waffle fries and other sides.
—Katelyn Umholtz, Kansas City Star, 27 May 2026
Breakfast is a treat, with made-from-scratch English muffins and housemade jams, plus heartier items like a smothered breakfast burrito.
—Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 23 Apr. 2026
Otherwise, Rhoda picks the red rice; Laurence and Oscar pick the hoppin’ John; Anthony and Brittany pick collard greens; Duyen and Brandon pick the smothered cabbage; Justin and Sherry pick potato salad; and Jonathan and Jennifer pick the hoecakes.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 31 Mar. 2026
Robust, malty, and melt-in-your-mouth tender, this smothered cabbage recipe will warm your soul and delight your tastebuds.
—Pableaux Johnson, Southern Living, 25 Nov. 2025
The smothered steak biscuit is available to order in-store and online through January 2026, a Bojangles spokesperson told CharlotteFive.
—Tanasia Kenney, Charlotte Observer, 7 Nov. 2025
Verb
Gilgeous-Alexander, smothered and bothered, was a minus-13 in the period.
—William Guillory, New York Times, 31 May 2026
The best slice pizza, according to the guide, comes from L’Industrie Pizzeria in New York, which is known for a slice smothered in Burrata.
—Connie Ogle
may 29, Miami Herald, 29 May 2026
Even Donovan Mitchell’s 31-point performance wasn’t enough to keep Cleveland competitive as the Knicks’ defense smothered the Cavaliers’ perimeter attack for the fourth straight game.
—Alejandro Avila, FOXNews.com, 26 May 2026
The reddish-brown mud that smothered Bok Kongphan's Hawaii farm has hardened in the tropical sun.
—ABC News, 16 May 2026
Moments later, Harris pressed again, but Marcinkowski smothered the shot at point-blank range to keep the visitors’ halftime deficit at 2-0.
—Daily News, 14 May 2026
Before this, in the mid 20th century, a standard cut of meat at mealtimes was a pork loin or beef steak, smothered in cream sauce.
—Rebecca Firkser, Bon Appetit Magazine, 14 May 2026
Through the first three games of the series, the Golden Knights smothered Anaheim’s power play, killing all 11 penalties Vegas took in the series.
—Los Angeles Times, 11 May 2026
On the other hand, some volcanoes prefer to ambush us, even when smothered in instrumentation.
—Quanta Magazine, 8 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for smothered
Adjective
-
Baghaei said the future of the choked Strait of Hormuz will depend on the countries of Oman and Iran, as both nations have a plan to manage passage through the waterway.—
Alayna Treene,
CNN Money,
30 May 2026
-
San Franciscans who think Muni buses are always packed, or prone to crawl along choked streets, may find their views validated in a new slide presentation released by the Municipal Transportation Agency.—
Rachel Swan,
San Francisco Chronicle,
6 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
His trademark cool was sidelined by a more demonstrative style, closer to the theatrical sensibilities of 2Pac than the muted menace that once defined him.—
Jayson Buford,
Rolling Stone,
3 June 2026
-
Breeding siblings The first step was to find a common bean plant with a muted In11 receptor.—
Jacek Krywko,
ArsTechnica,
3 June 2026
Verb
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Autopsies determined that Shine was strangled and Carse died from sharp force trauma, the police department said.—
Tim Stelloh,
NBC news,
30 May 2026
-
Cage speared Dax and strangled him with the unbuckled rope.—
Alfred Konuwa,
Forbes.com,
24 May 2026
Verb
-
Wilson felt stifled and forced a trade to Denver.—
Mike Sando,
New York Times,
5 June 2026
-
The war has stifled the flow of oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz.—
Damian J. Troise,
Los Angeles Times,
29 May 2026
Verb
-
That could be a good thing for USC-UCLA, Iowa-Nebraska, Illinois-Northwestern and other Big Ten rivalry games that tend to get buried on the last weekend of the regular season.—
Austin Meek,
New York Times,
29 May 2026
-
His ashes are buried in the Memorial Garden at our church and his name added to a list of those who reside there.—
Letters to the Editor,
Hartford Courant,
29 May 2026
Adjective
-
By the time volunteer firefighters from nearby Cachagua arrived, McCord estimated that the fire was about 70% extinguished.—
Lucy Hodgman,
San Francisco Chronicle,
27 Mar. 2026
-
That conditional pick, acquired in August’s salary dump of Haywood Highsmith, effectively has become extinguished.—
Ira Winderman,
Sun Sentinel,
10 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
As the story goes, attendance was weak, the weather was bad, and the tournament experience was just lacking.—
James Burky,
Denver Post,
29 May 2026
-
As many as 40 states combine one-party control with institutional barriers weak enough to fall to political pressure.—
Bruce Sibley,
Time,
29 May 2026
Verb
-
And when the co-owner of a vineyard is found dead, drowned in his own wine, the women work to make sense of this seemingly unmotivated murder.—
Denise Petski,
Deadline,
2 June 2026
-
It just is drowned out by a lot of the hate.—
Kimberly Nordyke,
HollywoodReporter,
1 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Smothered.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/smothered. Accessed 9 Jun. 2026.
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