Synonyms/Hypernyms (Ordered by Estimated Frequency) of noun smother
2 senses of smother
Sense 1
clutter, jumble, muddle, fuddle, mare's nest, welter, smother -- (a confused multitude of things)
=> disorderliness, disorder -- (a condition in which things are not in their expected places; "the files are in complete disorder")
Sense 2
smother -- (a stifling cloud of smoke)
=> smoke, fume -- (a cloud of fine particles suspended in a gas)
Synonyms/Hypernyms (Ordered by Estimated Frequency) of verb smother
5 senses of smother
Sense 1
smother, surround -- (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")
Sense 2
smother, asphyxiate, suffocate -- (deprive of oxygen and prevent from breathing; "Othello smothered Desdemona with a pillow"; "The child suffocated herself with a plastic bag that the parents had left on the floor")
=> 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")
Sense 3
smother, stifle, strangle, muffle, repress -- (conceal or hide; "smother a yawn"; "muffle one's anger"; "strangle a yawn")
=> suppress, stamp down, inhibit, subdue, conquer, curb -- (to put down by force or authority; "suppress a nascent uprising"; "stamp down on littering"; "conquer one's desires")
Sense 4
smother -- (form an impenetrable cover over; "the butter cream smothered the cake")
=> cover, spread over -- (form a cover over; "The grass covered the grave")
Sense 5
smother, put out -- (deprive of the oxygen necessary for combustion; "smother fires")
=> snuff out, extinguish -- (put an end to; kill; "The Nazis snuffed out the life of many Jewish children")