1
as in strangles
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
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in stifles
to refrain from openly showing or uttering
he quickly smothered his inappropriate laughter at the funeral ceremony
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in buries
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 smothers
Paul Cappiello, Louisville Courier Journal, 6 Mar. 2026
On the latter, Bollywood royalty Asha Bhosle, 92, sings in Hindi of setting sail to the other side, but Albarn smothers her beneath heraldic bursts of Disneyfied psych-pop.
—Jazz Monroe, Pitchfork, 27 Feb. 2026
South Grand Prairie smothers Richardson to move on South Grand Prairie got 19 points from Janae Johnson to lead the Warriors to a 41-26 drubbing of Richardson in a Class 6A Division I bi-district game on Monday.
—Darren Lauber, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 17 Feb. 2026
The filmmaker leans pop-comic rather than petrifying in his final draft, opting for earnestness that smothers atmospheric dread.
—Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 6 Feb. 2026
If either smothers the grass for long periods, this can compact soil and lead to mold problems.
—Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 21 Jan. 2026
At Lo Zingaro Nature Reserve, Mediterranean scrub smothers steep hillsides that edge abruptly to meet a surreal, gin-clear water.
—Rosalyn Wikeley, Condé Nast Traveler, 10 Jan. 2026
Complexity smothers everything, like Japanese knotweed.
—Adrian Wooldridge, Twin Cities, 6 Dec. 2025
Prior to his own arrest and incarceration, Rick then smothers Martin to death in the hospital to spare him from witnessing the downfall of his son and destruction of his legacy.
—Megan McCluskey, Time, 13 Nov. 2025
Verb
The pieces knit together to form a cast iron surface that sheds water, smothers weeds and holds up for a long time.
—Paul Cappiello, Louisville Courier Journal, 6 Mar. 2026
On the latter, Bollywood royalty Asha Bhosle, 92, sings in Hindi of setting sail to the other side, but Albarn smothers her beneath heraldic bursts of Disneyfied psych-pop.
—Jazz Monroe, Pitchfork, 27 Feb. 2026
South Grand Prairie smothers Richardson to move on South Grand Prairie got 19 points from Janae Johnson to lead the Warriors to a 41-26 drubbing of Richardson in a Class 6A Division I bi-district game on Monday.
—Darren Lauber, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 17 Feb. 2026
The filmmaker leans pop-comic rather than petrifying in his final draft, opting for earnestness that smothers atmospheric dread.
—Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 6 Feb. 2026
If either smothers the grass for long periods, this can compact soil and lead to mold problems.
—Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 21 Jan. 2026
At Lo Zingaro Nature Reserve, Mediterranean scrub smothers steep hillsides that edge abruptly to meet a surreal, gin-clear water.
—Rosalyn Wikeley, Condé Nast Traveler, 10 Jan. 2026
Complexity smothers everything, like Japanese knotweed.
—Adrian Wooldridge, Twin Cities, 6 Dec. 2025
Prior to his own arrest and incarceration, Rick then smothers Martin to death in the hospital to spare him from witnessing the downfall of his son and destruction of his legacy.
—Megan McCluskey, Time, 13 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for smothers
Verb
-
As Grace looks on in horror, her soon-to-be husband strangles Ursula and snaps her neck.—
Louis Peitzman,
Vulture,
20 Mar. 2026
-
Mostly, though, Boland strangles batters with his suffocating and deadly-accurate line and length.—
Tim Spiers,
New York Times,
7 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Nothing stifles a good time like being stressed about what is going on at home without any way to intervene.—
Kaitlyn Yarborough,
Southern Living,
10 Mar. 2026
-
Some parents have no issue monitoring and restricting how kids are using social media, AI chat bots, and even texting apps to keep them safe, while others worry too much oversight is an invasion of privacy and stifles their child's ability to develop independence.—
Liz Regalia,
Parents,
26 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
The Placer County Water Agency has mapped out $295 million in projects that will upgrade infrastructure, such as rebuilding plants and rehabbing buries pipes, from the foothills to the freeway.—
Nicole Buss,
Sacbee.com,
4 Mar. 2026
-
Despite such doubts, Malaysia is positioning itself as Southeast Asia's hub for the alternative technology, a three-step process that captures, transports and buries carbon dioxide which contributes to climate change.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
17 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Like other invasive plants, stinknet chokes native plants and increases fire risk.—
Shi En Kim,
AZCentral.com,
13 Mar. 2026
-
With fuel and freight prices skyrocketing as war chokes the Strait of Hormuz, the Panama Canal is seeing more business than usual.—
Elizabeth González,
CNN Money,
12 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Blue light from screens suppresses melatonin by up to 80%, delaying sleep onset when viewed within an hour of bedtime and fragmenting deep sleep.—
John La Puma,
Oc Register,
26 Mar. 2026
-
Blue light suppresses melatonin and makes falling back asleep significantly harder.—
Allison Palmer,
Miami Herald,
23 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Leo consistently overcomes challenges such as low light, rapid movement, and split second moments to produce sharp, compelling images.—
Heide Janssen,
Oc Register,
15 Mar. 2026
-
LithSonic overcomes this challenge by using supersonic flow, similar to the conditions inside a rocket engine, to achieve ultra-rapid cooling through a process known as shock quenching.—
Jijo Malayil,
Interesting Engineering,
9 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
What did work in one of the older movies, though, was the Oxygen Destroyer device, which effectively suffocates the creature.—
Sergio Pereira,
Space.com,
27 Feb. 2026
-
Complexity is exactly what suffocates scale.—
May Habib,
Fortune,
24 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
In Charlie Chaplin’s 1936 film Modern Times, a factory worker struggles to keep pace with an ever-accelerating assembly line—until the machine swallows him whole.—
Nick Lichtenberg,
Fortune,
26 Mar. 2026
-
The actor audibly swallows to fight back the tears glittering in his eyes before continuing.—
Roxana Hadadi,
Vulture,
24 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Smothers.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/smothers. Accessed 1 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
