1
as in choked
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2
as in muted
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1
as in strangled
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
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in stifled
to refrain from openly showing or uttering
he quickly smothered his inappropriate laughter at the funeral ceremony
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in buried
to defeat by a large margin
the soccer team smothered their first few opponents in the championships, but lost narrowly in the final round
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of smothered
Katelyn Umholtz, Kansas City Star, 27 May 2026
Breakfast is a treat, with made-from-scratch English muffins and housemade jams, plus heartier items like a smothered breakfast burrito.
—Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 23 Apr. 2026
Otherwise, Rhoda picks the red rice; Laurence and Oscar pick the hoppin’ John; Anthony and Brittany pick collard greens; Duyen and Brandon pick the smothered cabbage; Justin and Sherry pick potato salad; and Jonathan and Jennifer pick the hoecakes.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 31 Mar. 2026
Robust, malty, and melt-in-your-mouth tender, this smothered cabbage recipe will warm your soul and delight your tastebuds.
—Pableaux Johnson, Southern Living, 25 Nov. 2025
The smothered steak biscuit is available to order in-store and online through January 2026, a Bojangles spokesperson told CharlotteFive.
—Tanasia Kenney, Charlotte Observer, 7 Nov. 2025
Tara Massouleh McCay, Southern Living, 12 June 2026
One night in 1983, the two smothered Smith’s kitchen in corn kernels.
—Tanya Babbar, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 10 June 2026
When doctors smothered it in ointment, about 45 larvae crawled out.
—Beth Mole, ArsTechnica, 9 June 2026
Scientists feared the Santa Monica Mountains’ last remaining steelhead trout were dead, smothered by debris flows unleashed by the Palisades fire.
—Lila Seidman, Los Angeles Times, 9 June 2026
Dougherty led the criminal investigation that found two sources for the fire – an old fire that had been insufficiently smothered and Xcel power lines.
—The Denver Post Editorial Board, Denver Post, 8 June 2026
Brunson, smothered by the Spurs’ tenacious defense, missed shot after shot, but—clutch as ever—tied the game at 104 with an off-kilter jumper, then was in the right place to make the game-winning play when Wembanyama threw the ball away, and scored the game-winning point.
—Louisa Thomas, New Yorker, 7 June 2026
The Giants’ lineup smothered the Cubs’ pitchers, hitting seven home runs and scoring the first 16 runs of the game en route to an 18-3 walloping at Wrigley Field.
—Andy Martinez, Chicago Tribune, 5 June 2026
Gilgeous-Alexander, smothered and bothered, was a minus-13 in the period.
—William Guillory, New York Times, 31 May 2026
Adjective
Outside of smothered biscuit sandwiches, District Biskuits also sells mac and cheese, chicken tenders with various dipping sauces, waffle fries and other sides.
—Katelyn Umholtz, Kansas City Star, 27 May 2026
Breakfast is a treat, with made-from-scratch English muffins and housemade jams, plus heartier items like a smothered breakfast burrito.
—Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 23 Apr. 2026
Otherwise, Rhoda picks the red rice; Laurence and Oscar pick the hoppin’ John; Anthony and Brittany pick collard greens; Duyen and Brandon pick the smothered cabbage; Justin and Sherry pick potato salad; and Jonathan and Jennifer pick the hoecakes.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 31 Mar. 2026
Robust, malty, and melt-in-your-mouth tender, this smothered cabbage recipe will warm your soul and delight your tastebuds.
—Pableaux Johnson, Southern Living, 25 Nov. 2025
The smothered steak biscuit is available to order in-store and online through January 2026, a Bojangles spokesperson told CharlotteFive.
—Tanasia Kenney, Charlotte Observer, 7 Nov. 2025
Verb
The creamy, rich, and cheesy potato dish is perfect alongside a short stack of pancakes smothered in their addictive butter syrup.
—Tara Massouleh McCay, Southern Living, 12 June 2026
One night in 1983, the two smothered Smith’s kitchen in corn kernels.
—Tanya Babbar, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 10 June 2026
When doctors smothered it in ointment, about 45 larvae crawled out.
—Beth Mole, ArsTechnica, 9 June 2026
Scientists feared the Santa Monica Mountains’ last remaining steelhead trout were dead, smothered by debris flows unleashed by the Palisades fire.
—Lila Seidman, Los Angeles Times, 9 June 2026
Dougherty led the criminal investigation that found two sources for the fire – an old fire that had been insufficiently smothered and Xcel power lines.
—The Denver Post Editorial Board, Denver Post, 8 June 2026
Brunson, smothered by the Spurs’ tenacious defense, missed shot after shot, but—clutch as ever—tied the game at 104 with an off-kilter jumper, then was in the right place to make the game-winning play when Wembanyama threw the ball away, and scored the game-winning point.
—Louisa Thomas, New Yorker, 7 June 2026
The Giants’ lineup smothered the Cubs’ pitchers, hitting seven home runs and scoring the first 16 runs of the game en route to an 18-3 walloping at Wrigley Field.
—Andy Martinez, Chicago Tribune, 5 June 2026
Gilgeous-Alexander, smothered and bothered, was a minus-13 in the period.
—William Guillory, New York Times, 31 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for smothered
Adjective
-
Baghaei said the future of the choked Strait of Hormuz will depend on the countries of Oman and Iran, as both nations have a plan to manage passage through the waterway.—
Alayna Treene,
CNN Money,
30 May 2026
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San Franciscans who think Muni buses are always packed, or prone to crawl along choked streets, may find their views validated in a new slide presentation released by the Municipal Transportation Agency.—
Rachel Swan,
San Francisco Chronicle,
6 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Here are a few takeaways from the sentencing hearing, including Heuermann’s muted statement, the heartfelt and emotional speeches from victims’ families and the next steps on the road to justice.—
Eric Levenson,
CNN Money,
17 June 2026
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Pair it with pale blues and garden greens to double up on muted hues, or embrace the cinnamon hue and layer it with earth tones.—
Kate McGregor,
Architectural Digest,
17 June 2026
Verb
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An autopsy determined Wilton was strangled, stabbed multiple times and suffered from blunt-force trauma to the head and face.—
DeJanay Booth-Singleton,
CBS News,
15 June 2026
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Jurors deliberated for a week before voting to convict 48-year-old Francesca Lopez in the death of Felipe Lopez-Custodio, who was clubbed to death with a piece of scrap wood and strangled with a cord inside his apartment on Jacqueline Way in Concord.—
Nate Gartrell,
Mercury News,
10 June 2026
Verb
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This poor girl no longer has an identity beyond pleasing her male companion, who becomes both stifled by alarmed by this sudden, non-consensual change in personality.—
Josh Weiss,
Forbes.com,
11 June 2026
-
Critics said the two security laws have stifled the city's Western-style civil liberties that Beijing had promised to maintain when the former British colony returned to Chinese rule in 1997.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
8 June 2026
Verb
-
Minnesota Department of Transportation A pile of hailstones buried a lawn chair in Maple Grove, Minnesota.—
Nick Lentz,
CBS News,
20 June 2026
-
After the handball in the box on Czechia's Pavel Sulc, Teboho Mokoena stepped in for a penalty, closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and buried a shot into the left side of the net to make this a 1-1 match with under 10 minutes to go.—
Andrew Greif,
NBC news,
19 June 2026
Adjective
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By the time volunteer firefighters from nearby Cachagua arrived, McCord estimated that the fire was about 70% extinguished.—
Lucy Hodgman,
San Francisco Chronicle,
27 Mar. 2026
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That conditional pick, acquired in August’s salary dump of Haywood Highsmith, effectively has become extinguished.—
Ira Winderman,
Sun Sentinel,
10 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
But lingering high ticket prices combined with weaker teams might mean sparse attendance.—
Bloomberg,
Mercury News,
19 June 2026
-
Tokyo wants to appear to be fighting a weak yen, while welcoming it in private.—
William Pesek,
Forbes.com,
19 June 2026
Verb
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Then in September, floods drowned islanders living in Clarendon and submerged what was left of the banana harvest.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
16 June 2026
-
Two former Wheaton College football players drowned while swimming in Lake Michigan in western Michigan over the weekend.—
Todd Feurer,
CBS News,
16 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Smothered.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/smothered. Accessed 20 Jun. 2026.
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