Synonyms of smothering

smothering 1 of 2

adjective

as in suffocating

Related Words

• suffocating
• oppressive
• stifling
• stuffy
• moist
• subtropical
• tropical
• semitropical
• close
• heavy
• tropic
• clammy
• dank
• dripping
• sweltering
• steamy
• soaking
• saturated
• subhumid
• soaked
• torrid
• drenched
• soggy
• bathed
• sodden
• sopping
• washed
• wet
• summery
• waterlogged
• watered
• damp
• awash
• humid
• watery
• summerlike
• sticky
• muggy
• sultry
• doused
• soppy
• soused

Dissimilar Words

• dry
• bracing
• fresh
• refreshing
• cool
• crisp
• arid
• scorched
• baked
• burned
• dusty
• dehydrated
• droughty
• desert
• thirsty
• semiarid
• invigorating
• parched
• seared
• sunbaked
• sere
• waterless

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

Synonyms & Similar Words

• strangling
• choking
• suffocating
• stifling
• drowning
• destroying
• asphyxiating
• throttling
• slaying
• garroting
• dispatching
• felling
• croaking
• doing in

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• breathing
• inhaling
• expiring
• inspiring
• exhaling
• reviving
• resuscitating

2

as in stifling

to refrain from openly showing or uttering

he quickly smothered his inappropriate laughter at the funeral ceremony

Synonyms & Similar Words

• stifling
• suppressing
• swallowing
• strangling
• repressing
• controlling
• submerging
• containing
• choking (back)
• managing
• holding back
• sinking
• pocketing
• governing
• curbing
• quashing
• checking
• quelling
• bridling
• muffling
• squelching
• bottling up

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• expressing
• releasing
• venting
• taking out
• unleashing
• loosing

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

• burying
• overcoming
• whipping
• bombing
• throwing
• upsetting
• flattening
• annihilating
• beating
• dusting
• thrashing
• trimming
• mastering
• smoking
• routing
• overwhelming
• pasting
• creaming
• topping
• clobbering
• taking
• destroying
• waxing
• tromping
• whopping
• blowing away
• sweeping
• surpassing
• exceeding
• conquering
• skinning
• crushing
• scoring
• succeeding
• trouncing
• whomping
• whupping
• walloping
• drubbing
• subduing
• shellacking
• capping
• licking
• dispatching
• eating alive
• skunking
• overpowering
• beating the pants off
• subjugating
• surmounting
• snowing under
• vanquishing
• running circles around
• wiping the floor with
• overthrowing
• slaughtering
• overbearing
• finishing
• upending
• transcending
• outshining
• eclipsing
• outdoing
• prevailing (over)
• winning (against)
• besting
• outstripping
• flourishing
• outdistancing
• hurdling
• triumphing (over)
• excelling
• overmatching
• knocking over
• bettering
• overtopping
• worsting
• knocking off
• sinking
• breaking
• outfighting
• edging (out)
• pipping
• acing (out)
• doing in
• nosing out

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of smothering

Verb

That levity is something Great Jobs could use more of; the mood can occasionally be so smothering as to descend into mild sterility. — Lisle Younger, Pitchfork, 6 Nov. 2026

LeBron couldn’t even wait a week before smothering the locker room with his dissatisfaction. — Los Angeles Times, 29 Oct. 2026

Scottie’s punishing, smothering treatment of Judy, who bears much more than a passing resemblance to Madeleine, borders on truly terrifying to many women watching the film. — Literary Hub, 28 Oct. 2026

Stymied by the Seahawks’ smothering defense, Walker was unable to get anything going. — Anna Lazarus Caplan, PEOPLE, 26 Oct. 2026

Prosecutors have pointed to an autopsy report that said the children’s symptoms were consistent with being smothering. — Sally Krutzig, Idaho Statesman, 20 Oct. 2026

That smothering defense flustered the Valkyries into committing 19 turnovers that led to 24 points for Atlanta. — ABC News, 20 Oct. 2026

Investigators determined that Blake also had blunt-force injuries and signs of smothering. — Leigh Egan, FOXNews.com, 18 Oct. 2026

And none of the many alternative remedies for treating lice – such as smothering them with mayonnaise or oil, dehydrating them with saline or hot air, or zapping them with an electronic comb – have proven to be effective. — Emily J. C. Wong, The Conversation, 14 Oct. 2026