smother
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smoth·er
(smŭth′ər)v. smoth·ered, smoth·er·ing, smoth·ers
v.tr.
1.
a. To suffocate (another).
b. To deprive (a fire) of the oxygen necessary for combustion.
2. To conceal, suppress, or hide: Management smothered the true facts of the case. We smothered our indignation and pressed onward.
3. To cover thickly: smother chicken in sauce.
4. To lavish a surfeit of a given emotion on (someone): The grandparents smothered the child with affection.
v.intr.
1.
a. To suffocate.
b. To be extinguished.
2. To be concealed or suppressed.
3. To be surfeited with an emotion.
n.
Something, such as a dense cloud of smoke or dust, that smothers or tends to smother.
[Middle English smotheren, from smorther, dense smoke; see smolder.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
smother
(ˈsmʌðə)vb
1. to suffocate or stifle by cutting off or being cut off from the air
2. (tr) to surround (with) or envelop (in): he smothered her with love.
3. (tr) to extinguish (a fire) by covering so as to cut it off from the air
4. to be or cause to be suppressed or stifled: smother a giggle.
5. (Cookery) (tr) to cook or serve (food) thickly covered with sauce, etc
n
6. anything, such as a cloud of smoke, that stifles
7. a profusion or turmoil
8. archaic a state of smouldering or a smouldering fire
[Old English smorian to suffocate; related to Middle Low German smōren]
ˈsmothery adj
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
smoth•er
(ˈsmʌð ər)v.t.
1. to stifle or suffocate, as by smoke or other means of preventing free breathing.
2. to extinguish or deaden (fire, coals, etc.) by covering so as to exclude air.
3. to cover closely or thickly; envelop: to smother a steak with mushrooms.
4. to suppress or repress: to smother one's grief.
5. to cook (food) slowly in a tightly covered pan with little liquid: smothered onions.
v.i. 6. to become stifled or suffocated; be prevented from breathing freely.
7. to be stifled; be suppressed or concealed.
n. 8. dense, stifling smoke.
9. a smoking or smoldering state, as of burning matter.
10. dust, fog, etc., in a dense or enveloping cloud.
11. an overspreading profusion of anything: a smother of papers.
[1125–75; Middle English smorther dense smoke; akin to Old English smorian to suffocate]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
smother
Past participle: smothered
Gerund: smothering
Imperative |
---|
smother |
smother |
Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Switch to new thesaurus
Noun | 1. | ![]() disorderliness, disorder - a condition in which things are not in their expected places; "the files are in complete disorder" rummage - a jumble of things to be given away |
2. | smother - a stifling cloud of smoke | |
Verb | 1. | smother - envelop completely; "smother the meat in gravy" cover - provide with a covering or cause to be covered; "cover her face with a handkerchief"; "cover the child with a blanket"; "cover the grave with flowers" |
2. | ![]() asphyxiate, stifle, suffocate - be asphyxiated; die from lack of oxygen; "The child suffocated under the pillow" kill - cause to die; put to death, usually intentionally or knowingly; "This man killed several people when he tried to rob a bank"; "The farmer killed a pig for the holidays" | |
3. | smother - conceal or hide; "smother a yawn"; "muffle one's anger"; "strangle a yawn" | |
4. | smother - form an impenetrable cover over; "the butter cream smothered the cake" spread over, cover - form a cover over; "The grass covered the grave" | |
5. | smother - deprive of the oxygen necessary for combustion; "smother fires" extinguish, snuff out - put an end to; kill; "The Nazis snuffed out the life of many Jewish children" |
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
smother
verb
1. extinguish, put out, stifle, snuff They tried to smother the flames.
3. suppress, stifle, repress, hide, conceal, muffle, keep back She tried to smother her feelings of panic.
4. overwhelm, cover, shower, surround, heap, shroud, inundate, envelop, cocoon He smothered her with kisses.
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002
smother
verb1. To stop the breathing of:
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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Spanish / Español
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005
smother
(ˈsmaðə) verb1. to kill or die from lack of air, caused especially by a thick covering over the mouth and nose; to suffocate. He smothered his victim by holding a pillow over her face.asfixiar, ahogar
2. to prevent (a fire) from burning by covering it thickly. He threw sand on the fire to smother it.sofocar, extinguir, apagar
3. to cover (too) thickly; to overwhelm. When he got home his children smothered him with kisses.cubrir
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.
smother
vt, vi asfixiar(se) (form), ahogar( se)English-Spanish/Spanish-English Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.