smothering
/ˈsmʌðərɪŋ/
adjective
- Making it difficult to breathe by covering or surrounding completely.
- She pulled the smothering blanket off her face and gasped for air.
- The smoke from the fire was smothering, forcing us to crawl to the exit.
- The smothering heat of the desert made everyone feel faint.
- Overwhelming or oppressively controlling, especially in a relationship or environment.
- Living in a small town can feel smothering when everyone knows your business.
- His smothering attention made her feel like she had no freedom.
- The company's smothering bureaucracy crushed any new ideas.
Synonyms
noun
- The act of killing or suffocating someone by covering their face or blocking their breathing.
- In the crime novel, the victim died by smothering with a pillow.
- The detective ruled out smothering as the cause of death.
- The autopsy showed no signs of smothering or strangulation.
- The act of suppressing or extinguishing something completely.
- The smothering of the fire required several buckets of sand.
- The smothering of dissent led to widespread protests.
- The government's smothering of the free press was condemned internationally.