smuggle

verb

Definition of smugglenext
as in to sell
to move (people or goods) from one country to another secretly and illegally They were arrested for smuggling drugs across the border.

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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 smuggle In the melee the Koh-i-Noor was smuggled to the Persian general Ahmad Khan Abdali by a devoted harem member. — Hadley Hall Meares, Vanity Fair, 17 Aug. 2026 Jester called his mother after she was caught smuggling the fentanyl. — Matthew Ormseth, Los Angeles Times, 14 Aug. 2026 Taiwanese authorities in March investigated three men for trying to smuggle Super Micro computer servers containing advanced Nvidia chips to China. — ABC News, 11 Aug. 2026 One hundred and forty Africans had been smuggled onto that ship. — Anne Haley, Time, 11 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for smuggle
Recent Examples of Synonyms for smuggle
  1. sell
  2. distribute
  3. buy
  4. supply
Verb
  • The house sells most of its Champagne in European markets, including Britain, Belgium, Italy and Spain, as well as in West Africa, with smaller volumes going to the United States and Asia, Bonnet-Gobillard said.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 20 Aug. 2026
  • Investigators determined that multiple RVs may have been sold at Carson Pass RV in Lockeford without proper notification to their rightful owners and without completing the required Department of Motor Vehicles documentation.
    — Richard Ramos, CBS News, 20 Aug. 2026
Definition of sell
Verb
  • The group has constructed more than 820 all-terrain wheelchairs; fabricated 900 orthotics and prosthetics; and distributed more than 740 hearing aids.
    — Allie Torgan, CNN Money, 21 Aug. 2026
  • Netflix signed a deal in Cannes to distribute the film in Latin America, Spain, and Portugal.
    — Brent Lang, IndieWire, 20 Aug. 2026
Definition of distribute
Verb
  • Schwab investors continued to buy in July despite a choppy market backdrop, lifting the Schwab Trading Activity Index, known as STAX, for a third straight month and bringing it to its highest level since January 2022.
    — Deena Zaidi, CNBC, 19 Aug. 2026
  • Through a federal program known as 340B, created in 1992 to subsidize the treatment of low-income patients, hospitals that treat a certain percentage of low-income patients can buy drugs at a steep discount, while charging insurers or patients more.
    — CNN Money, CNN Money, 19 Aug. 2026
Definition of buy
Verb
  • Salt vendors then bid to supply the salt, and municipalities buy at the winning bid price under that joint contract.
    — Steve Zalusky, Chicago Tribune, 21 Aug. 2026
  • Water for the golf course is supplied by laser, effective in water-saving.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of supply

Browse Nearby Words

smug
smuggle
smuggled
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Cite this Entry

“Smuggle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/smuggle. Accessed 24 Aug. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on smuggle

Nglish: Translation of smuggle for Spanish Speakers

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