as in suppressed
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1
as in strangled
to be or cause to be killed by lack of breathable air
unfortunately, the robbers were stifled when they got trapped in the airless bank vault
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in swallowed
to refrain from openly showing or uttering
stifled a yawn
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in muffled
to deaden the sound of
he stifled a cough with his hand
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of stifled
Justin Chang, New Yorker, 5 Dec. 2025
Scott Fowler, Charlotte Observer, 5 Jan. 2026
The deal was completed as the Bay Area hotel market battles against a wave of loan defaults, plunging prices and property foreclosures that have stifled purchasing activity and new development.
—George Avalos, Mercury News, 5 Jan. 2026
Special teams were problematic for Minnesota, which saw the Predators score a pair of power play goals, while the Wild were stifled on a trio of man advantage opportunities.
—Jess Myers, Twin Cities, 24 Dec. 2025
Another could be policy changes or anything else that eases Americans’ uncertainty, which has drastically stifled hiring this year.
—Alicia Wallace, CNN Money, 19 Dec. 2025
Rescheduling cannabis would, however, ease barriers to conducting clinical trials that experts say have historically stifled scientific research.
—Luke Fountain, CNBC, 16 Dec. 2025
Most of Baylor's offensive possession were stifled because the Longhorns pressed all game.
—Zoe Collins Rath, Austin American Statesman, 15 Dec. 2025
But George feels stifled and beaten down.
—Nora Gilbert, The Conversation, 11 Dec. 2025
Between hugs and stifled tears, players walked up to sift through them.
—Mitch Bannon, New York Times, 2 Nov. 2025
Adjective
While unfolding the investigation, Guiraudie also finds the town seething with stifled lust that’s ready to burst out volcanically—and that’s inseparable from the natural mystery and wonder of country life.
—Verb
But lately teams have stacked the box and stifled the run against Carolina.
—Recent Examples of Synonyms for stifled
Adjective
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In The Way to Colonos, the horror that emerges is more suppressed and internal than in the ancient texts.—
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Too long submerged in suppressed grief, Zilpha now came up from its depth like any swimmer stroking toward light and sweet air.—
Verb
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Clancy allegedly strangled her three children and then tried to kill herself by jumping out a window in 2023, leaving her paralyzed from the sternum down.—
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Stefon Diggs allegedly strangled his female chef over money earlier this month.—
Verb
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The most famous, perhaps, was of lung cancer patient David Prueitt, who swallowed a supposedly lethal dose of medication and awoke three days later.—
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Developed by researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), the pill can report when it has been swallowed.—
Verb
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The boy buried his face in his hands, and the thick nest of hair shook as if in a wind, and the sobs, though muffled, grew louder.—
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Ignore that muffled screaming in the distance, that’s just the TV overlords punching air.—
Adjective
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The more involved Jana becomes, the more she is forced to confront her past and her repressed memories.—
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To me, Betsy is a repressed housewife who is trying to make it as a musician.—
Verb
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In 2022, four women choked to death on the rice cakes and 12 other people were hospitalized.—
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The woman, in her 80s, choked on daifuku — mochi filled with sweet bean paste — at her home in Minato Ward just after midnight on New Year’s Day and was later pronounced dead at a hospital.—
Verb
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Still, the overall response to the show was muted.—
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The stakes are muted for a thriller, and Congressman Stuart just drifts around and is never in much trouble.—
Adjective
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When monitoring wanes and enforcement fades, workers pay the price first in wages and safety, then in silenced voices and must choose between an empty stomach and their rights.—
Cite this Entry
“Stifled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/stifled. Accessed 12 Jan. 2026.
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