TONGUE-TIED Synonyms: 38 Similar and Opposite Words

tongue-tied

adjective

Definition of tongue-tied

as in mute

unable to speak because you are nervous or shy She became tongue-tied whenever he was around. He gets tongue-tied in front of crowds.

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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 tongue-tied My two companions—one of whom was Alabaster—seemed a bit tongue-tied. — Literary Hub, 22 July 2026 But on April 24, Stanford got tongue-tied when asked to explain her position on abolishing ICE. — David Weigel, semafor.com, 18 May 2026 At times, Raman was tongue-tied trying to answer simple questions. — Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 7 May 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for tongue-tied

Adjective

That column holds three buttons (volume up, volume down, and mute) alongside three indicator lights for Num Lock, Caps Lock, and Gaming Mode.

— Sascha Brodsky, PC Magazine, 11 Aug. 2026
Instead, their positions are conveyed to us through the media, political elites, and heads of industry who can amplify, mute, or distort them.

— Anandita Sabherwal, Time, 3 Aug. 2026

Definition of mute

Adjective

His friends, from brother Luigi (Charlie Day) to Princess Peach (Anya Taylor-Joy) veer in a similar direction, somehow coming across less fully formed and three-dimensional than their nearly speechless inspirations from Nintendo‘s flagship franchise.

— Wilson Chapman, IndieWire, 31 Mar. 2026
In helicopter video taken by Air Maui Helicopter Tours in Lahaina and posted online the people aboard are largely speechless.

— Phil Helsel, NBC News, 10 Aug. 2023

Definition of speechless

Adjective

Just as between them William James and Michael Oakeshott told us that there is no such thing as unmediated experience, so, surely, there is no such thing as inarticulate thought.

— Richard Lansdown, The New York Review of Books, 25 June 2026
Simpson, butched up and closed off and vibrating with inarticulate pain, is superb in the part, and Jimenez’s rigid shoulders and frozen face are wrenching.

— Sara Holdren, Vulture, 20 May 2026

Definition of inarticulate

Adjective

The students are challenging those actions in federal court, arguing that FIU's policy – and its application to their silent demonstration – violates their First Amendment rights.

— Ivan Taylor, CBS News, 21 Aug. 2026
North Korea remained silent for months about its initial deployment of troops to help Russia’s war machine, only confirming its soldiers were fighting against Ukraine in April 2025.

— Nick Paton Walsh, CNN Money, 21 Aug. 2026

Definition of silent

Browse Nearby Words

tongues

tongue-tied

tonic

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“Tongue-tied.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tongue-tied. Accessed 23 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of tongue-tied

adjective

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