smother
verb (used with object)
to stifle or suffocate, as by smoke or other means of preventing free breathing.
half-smothered
-
a word derived from
smother.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
At Pruth, when the Russian Army almost came to grief at the hands of the Turks, Peter's empress seized a saber and fought till she was half-smothered under the debris of a bombarded earthwork.
From Time Magazine Archive
Indeed, in Illinois Carter stunned even his own supporters by turning Mayor Richard Daley's last hurrah in a national primary into a half-smothered harrumph.
From Time Magazine Archive
In his half-smothered bass voice, pounding his fist on the desk, mild Louis Denfeld told Leahy that he wanted Radford and nobody else.
From Time Magazine Archive
"Your friends are as good as yourself then, Mrs. Jones," said Helen; but as she spoke she was startled by what sounded like a half-smothered laugh or exclamation of some kind just outside the door.
From Uncanny Tales by Mrs. Mary Louisa Molesworth
Among his followers, every latent element of discord, pride, jealousy, and ancient half-smothered feuds, were ready at any moment to break out, and tear the whole asunder.
From The Conspiracy of Pontiac and the Indian War after the Conquest of Canada by Francis Parkman
