1. (

• smother ,
• surround ,

) envelop completely; "smother the meat in gravy" ;

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" ;

3. (

• smother ,
• stifle ,
• strangle ,
• muffle ,
• repress

) suppress in order to conceal or hide; "smother a yawn"; "muffle one's anger"; "strangle a laugh"; "repress a cry of fear" ;

4. (

• smother

) form an impenetrable cover over; "the butter cream smothered the cake" ;

5. (

• smother ,
• put_out

) deprive of the oxygen necessary for combustion; "smother fires" ;

1. (

• smothering ,
• suffocating ,
• suffocative

) causing difficulty in breathing especially through lack of fresh air and presence of heat; "the choking June dust"; "the smothering soft voices"; "smothering heat"; "the room was suffocating;