1
2
as in suppressing
to put a stop to (something) by the use of force
squashed any effort to reform the country's power structure
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of squashing
TDEs generally occur when stars venture too close to the supermassive black holes that sit at the heart of large galaxies, resulting in the immense gravity of these cosmic titans simultaneously squashing the stellar body horizontally while stretching it vertically.
—
Robert Lea, Space.com, 18 Feb. 2026
He was immediately taken aback to learn that the process required first squashing the breast flat.
—Erik German, Fortune, 15 Feb. 2026
At home, the Guard’s Basij volunteer arm brutally suppressed recent nationwide protests, establishing itself as the theocracy’s primary tool for squashing dissent.
—Jon Gambrell, Los Angeles Times, 29 Jan. 2026
Jaffe, who has studied 100-year-old families, said most families find compromises between letting the next generation take the reins and squashing their individuality.
—Hayley Cuccinello, CNBC, 11 Dec. 2025
This reeks of corruption in service of squashing free speech.
—Simon Crerar, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 Dec. 2025
Shelton, 49, and Stefani, 56, are winding down from a busy 2025 together and will support each other through an even busier 2026, a Stefani source tells PEOPLE, squashing reports that the couple’s relationship has been strained.
—Rachel Desantis, PEOPLE, 9 Dec. 2025
Moments of reconciliation — like YFN Lucci and Young Thug squashing their decade-long feud this fall — often make less noise.
—Janeé Bolden, Rolling Stone, 26 Nov. 2025
The viral beverage is supposed to support hormone regulation during periods of chronic stress, giving you more energy, improving your sleep, and squashing food cravings.
—Jani Hall, Health, 8 Oct. 2025
Robert Lea, Space.com, 18 Feb. 2026
He was immediately taken aback to learn that the process required first squashing the breast flat.
—Erik German, Fortune, 15 Feb. 2026
At home, the Guard’s Basij volunteer arm brutally suppressed recent nationwide protests, establishing itself as the theocracy’s primary tool for squashing dissent.
—Jon Gambrell, Los Angeles Times, 29 Jan. 2026
Jaffe, who has studied 100-year-old families, said most families find compromises between letting the next generation take the reins and squashing their individuality.
—Hayley Cuccinello, CNBC, 11 Dec. 2025
This reeks of corruption in service of squashing free speech.
—Simon Crerar, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 Dec. 2025
Shelton, 49, and Stefani, 56, are winding down from a busy 2025 together and will support each other through an even busier 2026, a Stefani source tells PEOPLE, squashing reports that the couple’s relationship has been strained.
—Rachel Desantis, PEOPLE, 9 Dec. 2025
Moments of reconciliation — like YFN Lucci and Young Thug squashing their decade-long feud this fall — often make less noise.
—Janeé Bolden, Rolling Stone, 26 Nov. 2025
The viral beverage is supposed to support hormone regulation during periods of chronic stress, giving you more energy, improving your sleep, and squashing food cravings.
—Jani Hall, Health, 8 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for squashing
Verb
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His win in Istanbul in 2019 represented a crushing blow to Erdogan, whose own political ascent began as the city’s mayor.—
Beril Akman,
Bloomberg,
9 Mar. 2026
-
For too many New Yorkers, a single emergency can mean eviction or crushing debt.—
Tiffany Caban,
New York Daily News,
8 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
In my case, treatment looks like temporarily suppressing the adenomyosis with Lupron injections before attempting another embryo transfer to create the best possible environment for implantation.—
L'Oreal Thompson Payton,
SELF,
6 Mar. 2026
-
Meanwhile, the Islamic Republic was violently suppressing antigovernment protests across the country.—
Eric Cortellessa,
Time,
5 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The Tigers erased an 11-point halftime deficit in the third quarter, knotting the contest at 33-33 before running out of gas — just as Bama was mashing the pedal to the floor.—
The Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
5 Mar. 2026
-
Credit those 4,000-plus pounds of curb weight with mashing down bumpy roads into something more pleasant.—
Marty Padgett,
The Drive,
26 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Sales of the iPhone have also been instrumental in quelling Wall Street’s concerns about where the company stands in the AI race.—
Lisa Eadicicco,
CNN Money,
2 Mar. 2026
-
Some of Altman’s and OpenAI’s social media push over the weekend seemed aimed at quelling concerns among the company’s own employees over the Pentagon contract.—
Jeremy Kahn,
Fortune,
2 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Other business leaders have trialed, but then dialed back, four-day work week experiments after seeing the strain of squeezing five days of work into four.—
Sydney Lake,
Fortune,
3 Mar. 2026
-
The business has been brutal for the last couple of years — the pandemic, the strikes, the profit squeezing that led to a bunch of reduced production.—
Bloomberg,
Mercury News,
2 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Multiple officers were involved in subduing Guity and placing him in handcuffs, police said.—
Colleen Cronin,
Boston Herald,
14 Jan. 2026
-
As the representative for the armed wing of a human empire, you're tasked with subduing these Lovecraftian abominations and securing a foothold for humanity on alien worlds.—
Alan Bradley,
Space.com,
5 Jan. 2026
Verb
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His name has been associated with police operations carried out in the context of protests, detentions, and crowd-control actions executed by the PNB, a force that since its creation has played a central role in repressing political dissent.—
Antonio María Delgado,
Miami Herald,
6 Jan. 2026
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Despite these differences, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is resorting to a familiar playbook for repressing protests, blending a passing acknowledgement of his system’s shortcomings with maximum deflection and defiance.—
Washington Post,
Washington Post,
5 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Johnson will block a push by moderate House Republicans for a vote on renewing expiring Obamacare subsidies, quashing a last-ditch effort to head off a spike in insurance premiums.—
Greg Iacurci,
CNBC,
6 Mar. 2026
-
The Magic jumped out to a 13-7 lead and led all but a brief moment in the early going of the first half, quashing any momentum the Clippers tried to establish.—
Janis Carr,
Oc Register,
23 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Squashing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/squashing. Accessed 11 Mar. 2026.
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