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.
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tongue-tied
Adjective
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Please check back again soon for the recorded video. LIVE VIDEO TO BEGIN AFTER AD Loaded: 0% Progress: 0% Use up and down arrows to change volume, and spacebar or enter to toggle mute.—
Dhruv Mehrotra,
Wired News,
25 June 2025 -
Perhaps there was a constructive thought behind the conscious decision to mute clubhouse reminders of that decade-old dynastic run.—
Andrew Baggarly,
New York Times,
8 June 2025
Adjective
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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
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Because his work, as is often the case, leaves us almost speechless.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
10 Jan. 2023
Adjective
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In a brittle, anxious, nonlinear, incomprehensible (BANI) world where change is the only constant, the leadership traits that once earned respect—tenacity, decisiveness and stoicism—are no longer enough.—
Arthi Rabikrisson,
Forbes.com,
18 June 2025
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Each episode represents an hour in the staff’s frenetic, 15-hour day that culminates with a mass casualty shooting and an incomprehensible case of the measles involving an unvaccinated child.—
Lynette Rice,
Deadline,
12 June 2025
Adjective
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Hank’s friends – conspiracy theorist Dale, military barber Bill, and cool but inarticulate Boomhauer, along with Peggy’s friends Minh and meteorologist Nancy, and Bobby’s friend Connie helped the Hills navigate a changing world.—
Denise Petski,
Deadline,
30 May 2025
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The accents of remorse are elliptical, inarticulate.—
Sarah Beckwith,
New Yorker,
26 May 2025
Adjective
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His political views — or what are known of them — are contradictory if not incoherent.—
Jesus Mesa,
MSNBC Newsweek,
11 June 2025
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Tom’s latest vehicle for death-defying stunts and — at this point — incoherent technobabble pits him against the AI from Dead Reckoning again.—
Eric Vilas-Boas,
Vulture,
23 May 2025
Adjective
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There was the transition from silent films to talkies, obviously; moviemaking transformed into an entirely different art.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
24 June 2025
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Occidental Studios, which dates back to 1913, was once used by Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks to make silent films.—
Roger Vincent,
Los Angeles Times,
24 June 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Tongue-tied.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tongue-tied. Accessed 30 Jun. 2025.
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