snuffing (out)

verb

present participle of snuff (out)
1
as in extinguishing
to cause to cease burning snuff out the candle

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in eradicating
to destroy all traces of the forest fire snuffed out all of the animal life in the immediate area

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in sitting on
to put a stop to (something) by the use of force brutally snuffed out the movement for democratic rule

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for snuffing (out)
  1. extinguishing
  2. eradicating
  3. suppressing
  4. erasing
  5. quelling
  6. abolishing
  7. subduing
  8. wiping out
Verb
  • Her passion for Pol is a flare, burning brightly and extinguishing quickly.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 5 Oct. 2026
  • Chinese authorities have tightened their grip on the media, the legal profession, and civil society, limiting the space for Chinese citizens to discuss mounting social woes and extinguishing emerging calls for deeper political reform.
    — Carl Minzner, Foreign Affairs, 5 Oct. 2026
Definition of extinguishing
Verb
  • This park is the result of the Tompkins’ passion for this part of the world and their desire to rewild this part of Chile that had been overfarmed and overgrazed to the point of almost eradicating its native flora and fauna.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 6 Oct. 2026
  • Community meetings focus on eradicating the homeless and protecting property values rather than supporting neighbors or providing shelter.
    — Ben Travers, IndieWire, 24 Sep. 2026
Definition of eradicating
Verb
  • Lampooning authority is even common in autocratic societies where governments spend large sums of money suppressing speech.
    — Christopher von Rueden, The Conversation, 3 Oct. 2026
  • This is economic capacity currently lost to suppressing yield across the labor market.
    — Katica Roy, Fortune, 2 Oct. 2026
Definition of suppressing
Verb
  • Karlsson was ruled offside after a review, erasing Egor Chinakhov’s work of art.
    — Josh Yohe, New York Times, 4 Oct. 2026
  • This component's other skills include locating large files and folders, locating empty files, irretrievably erasing drives (other than the boot drive), uninstalling apps, and defragmenting disks and the registry.
    — Neil J. Rubenking, PC Magazine, 30 Sep. 2026
Definition of erasing
Verb
  • There is something instructive in the agent concluding a diatribe on quelling revolutionary violence with a note about feeling inspired.
    — Stephanie Wambugu, Vulture, 12 Oct. 2026
  • The break with Callaway was the first sign that Good Good’s attempts at quelling the crisis were not going well after Clark’s statement on social media Wednesday night.
    — Kyle Feldscher, CNN Money, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of quelling
Verb
  • This endeavor is not easy, and these companies are strongly advocating for abolishing the leap second.
    — Vahe Peroomian, The Conversation, 8 Oct. 2026
  • The vice president also blasted Nixon, who is in an uphill race to defeat Moody, for supporting defunding the police and abolishing prisons.
    — Mabinty Quarshie, The Washington Examiner, 1 Oct. 2026
Definition of abolishing
Verb
  • The school's head teacher, Krzysztof Ochmanski, was injured while subduing the teenager, officials said.
    — James Cirrone, FOXNews.com, 8 Oct. 2026
  • The handful of Israeli passengers grappled with the copilot for several minutes before subduing him and binding his hands with the cord from a set of headphones.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 2 Oct. 2026
Definition of subduing
Verb
  • Shares slumped 16% for a third straight session of losses, wiping out $400 billion in market cap on Monday alone.
    — Gail Krishnan, CNBC, 23 June 2026
  • The prospect of even a mini-Dust Bowl is alarming as the original disaster during the Great Depression sent dust clouds across rural America, wiping out entire communities and triggering mass migration to other parts of the country.
    — Jason Ma, Fortune, 21 June 2026
Definition of wiping out
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Browse Nearby Words

snuffing it
snuffing (out)
snuff it
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Snuffing (out).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/snuffing%20%28out%29. Accessed 13 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of abscond

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

7 Words for Bad Endings and Rough Situations

The Words of the Week - Oct. 9

Why do we call it a 'flea market'?
See More

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
a cup of tea and a golf ball on tee side by side
Quiz: Sounds Like... Choose the word that sounds like it fits the clue...
See All