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smothering 1 of 2

adjective

as in suffocating

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smothering

2 of 2

verb

present participle of smother
1
as in strangling
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 stifling
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 burying
to defeat by a large margin the soccer team smothered their first few opponents in the championships, but lost narrowly in the final round

Synonyms & Similar 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 smothering
Verb
The Minnesota defense stopped Love on a sneak, and from that point on, the defense was smothering, applying pressure at the perfect time. — Matt Schneidman, New York Times, 13 Sep. 2026 Wildfires are ripping across parts of Indonesia, destroying precious peatland and smothering the country in a toxic smoke so thick, people are struggling to breathe. — Laura Paddison, CNN Money, 9 Sep. 2026 Leaning on her and wrapping her body around her, almost smothering. — Literary Hub, 9 Sep. 2026 Hentges was accused of smothering his wife, Cheryl, 70, with a pillow in July 2024. — Christina Hall, Freep.com, 9 Sep. 2026 The Trojans posted their first shutout since 2024, smothering the Bulldogs with two safeties, four sacks and long stretches without yielding a yard, first down or rhythm. — Ryan Kartje, Los Angeles Times, 5 Sep. 2026 This is typically done with a sod cutter, by smothering with cardboard or plastic, or with a nonselective herbicide. — Teresa Woodard, Midwest Living, 21 Aug. 2026 In June, he is accused of smothering a 1-month-old kitten with a rag soaked in bleach. — Steven Yablonski, Miami Herald, 7 Aug. 2026 Forest fires on Sumatra and Borneo islands often break out during dry spells, smothering parts of nearby Singapore and Malaysia in haze. — ABC News, 6 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for smothering
  1. suffocating
  2. strangling
  3. stifling
  4. burying
  5. oppressive
  6. choking
  7. suppressing
  8. overcoming
Adjective
  • Scientists suspect that the combination of high heat and a suffocating deep-tropical air mass will be considered the worst humidity the region has experienced in the modern era.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 9 Sep. 2026
  • Eilish will play Greenwood, the brilliant young woman at the center of Plath’s semi-autobiographical story, which follows her descent into mental illness amid the suffocating expectations placed on women in 1950s America.
    — SPIN Staff, SPIN, 8 Sep. 2026
Definition of suffocating
Verb
  • Law enforcement confirmed that in one of the hundreds of thousands of videos that exist, Raymond Horsch is seen strangling a woman with a zip tie, which sources say would implicate him in murder.
    — Joe Holden, CBS News, 17 Sep. 2026
  • After fatally strangling the children, Clancy attempted suicide by cutting her wrists and jumping out of a second-story window.
    — Liam Quinn, PEOPLE, 15 Sep. 2026
Definition of strangling
Verb
  • The senator, who has introduced bipartisan legislation aimed at addressing AI safety risks, stressed that any new regulation should be targeted and sensitive to concerns about stifling global competitiveness.
    — Kevin Breuninger, CNBC, 16 Sep. 2026
  • Trapped together in the heavy, stifling isolation of the summer heat, the siblings’ bond begins to shift into something unsettling and difficult to define.
    — Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 14 Sep. 2026
Definition of stifling
Verb
  • People are already burying the Chargers and this line moved from nearly double-digits (Chargers -9½) to under the key number of 7.
    — Dan Zaksheske OutKick, FOXNews.com, 17 Sep. 2026
  • What competing on Food Network's Pitmasters taught him about cooking under pressure, from elaborate plating to burying food underground and cooking it over heated stones.
    — Sid Evans, Southern Living, 15 Sep. 2026
Definition of burying
Adjective
  • There’s always another internet grift for someone looking to save himself fast, and without any gimmicky visual intrusions, the film feels authentically tuned into the aspirational mentality and oppressive reality of contemporary social media.
    — Guy Lodge, Variety, 15 Sep. 2026
  • Amid an oppressive stretch of extreme heat and Florida-esque humidity that has been punishing much of California, consider, for a moment, the Ice Age.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 10 Sep. 2026
Definition of oppressive
Verb
  • The family of a 7-year-old boy who nearly died after choking on a piece of meat and going into cardiac arrest reunited Monday with the paramedics and 911 dispatcher who helped save his life last month in Anne Arundel County.
    — Caroline Foreback, CBS News, 14 Sep. 2026
  • Construction workers, firefighters, and police officers, who stood shoulder to shoulder with him for months amid choking dust, burning debris, and twisted steel.
    — Raja Flores, STAT, 11 Sep. 2026
Definition of choking
Verb
  • In fact, El Nino is directly responsible for suppressing Atlantic hurricanes, and guess what?
    — Voice of the People, New York Daily News, 18 Sep. 2026
  • Other immune-suppressing medicines for serious systemic disease can include CellCept (mycophenolate), Azasan (azathioprine), or cyclophosphamide.
    — Julie Scott, Verywell Health, 17 Sep. 2026
Definition of suppressing
Verb
  • Andersson faces the task of overcoming differences in the opposition bloc.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 17 Sep. 2026
  • Also, underwater solar deployment requires overcoming extreme conditions such as corrosive salt, high pressure, and water ingress.
    — Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 11 Sep. 2026
Definition of overcoming

Browse Nearby Words

smothered
smothering
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Cite this Entry

“Smothering.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/smothering. Accessed 23 Sep. 2026.

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