smother

smother
v. & n.
—v.
1 tr. suffocate; stifle; kill by stopping the breath of or excluding air from.
2 tr. (foll. by with) overwhelm with (kisses, gifts, kindness, etc.) (smothered with affection).
3 tr. (foll. by in, with) cover entirely in or with (chicken smothered in mayonnaise).
4 tr. extinguish or deaden (a fire or flame) by covering it or heaping it with ashes etc.
5 intr. a die of suffocation. b have difficulty breathing.
6 tr. (often foll. by up) suppress or conceal; keep from notice or publicity.
7 tr. US defeat rapidly or utterly.
—n.
1 a cloud of dust or smoke.
2 obscurity caused by this.
Phrases and idioms:
smothered mate Chess checkmate in which the king, having no vacant square to move to, is checkmated by a knight.
Etymology: ME smorther f. the stem of OE smorian suffocate

Useful english dictionary. 2012.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Smother — Smoth er, n. [OE. smorther. See {Smother}, v. t.] 1. Stifling smoke; thick dust. Shak. [1913 Webster] 2. A state of suppression. [Obs.] [1913 Webster] Not to keep their suspicions in smother. Bacon. [1913 Webster] 3. That which smothers or causes …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Smother — Студийный альбом …   Википедия

  • Smother — Smoth er, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Smothered}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Smothering}.] [OE. smotheren; akin to E. smoor. See {Smoor}.] 1. To destroy the life of by suffocation; to deprive of the air necessary for life; to cover up closely so as to prevent… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • smother — ► VERB 1) suffocate by covering the nose and mouth. 2) extinguish (a fire) by covering it. 3) (smother in/with) cover entirely with. 4) cause to feel trapped and oppressed. 5) suppress (a feeling or action). ► NOUN …   English terms dictionary

  • smother — [smuth′ər] vt. [ME smorthren < smorther, dense smoke < base of OE smorian, to suffocate, akin to MLowG smoren, to smoke < var. of IE base * smel > SMELL] 1. a) to keep from getting enough air to breathe; stifle b) to kill in this way; …   English World dictionary

  • Smother — Smoth er, v. i. 1. To be suffocated or stifled. [1913 Webster] 2. To burn slowly, without sufficient air; to smolder. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Smother — est un film américain de Vince DiMeglio sorti en 2007. Sommaire 1 Synopsis 2 Fiche technique 3 Distribution 4 Lien externe …   Wikipédia en Français

  • smother — index assuage, extinguish, hamper, inhibit, prohibit, repress, stifle, strangle, subdue …   Law dictionary

  • smother — (v.) c.1200, to suffocate with smoke, from smorthre (n.) dense, suffocating smoke (late 12c.), from stem of O.E. smorian to suffocate, choke, possibly connected to SMOLDER (Cf. smolder). Meaning to kill by suffocation is from 1540s; sense of to… …   Etymology dictionary

  • smother — vb *suffocate, asphyxiate, stifle, choke, strangle, throttle …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • smother — [v] extinguish; cover, hide asphyxiate, choke, collect, compose, conceal, control, cool, cork, douse, envelop, heap, hush up*, inundate, keep back, kill, muffle, overwhelm, quash, quell, quench, rein, repress, restrain, shower, shroud, simmer… …   New thesaurus

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