muffling

verb

present participle of muffle
1
as in muting
to deaden the sound of the walls muffled their conversation so that only a low murmur was heard

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in wrapping
to surround or cover closely the airport had been muffled in fog all morning long

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of muffling The actress wears a toasty-looking fur hat and sits cross-legged on the floor, the Canadian road traffic muffling her voice slightly. — Lily Ford, HollywoodReporter, 2 Sep. 2026 Patmos would divide the open warehouse space into smaller rooms, add pipes and support infrastructure and install sound-muffling materials. — Ilana Arougheti june 26, Kansas City Star, 26 June 2026 The sound-muffling fabrics, carpets, ceiling tiles, tablecloths and rugs that used to decorate restaurants are deemed too stuffy these days, and even upholstered booths are being replaced by more barebones tables — and lots of them, close together. — Allyson Reedy, Denver Post, 13 May 2026 Their flexible design fits snugly into ears, muffling plane engine sounds and loud conversations. — Sian Babish, PEOPLE, 13 May 2026 Acidification reduces the pH of seawater, which also diminishes sound absorption, so the stain of ship’s engine noise spreads further, muffling the songs of humpbacks and the codas of sperm whales. — Literary Hub, 9 Apr. 2026 The timeless linen is backed with a white blackout liner to block out as much light as possible without adding unnecessary bulk to your window frames while muffling the sound from your street. — Nashia Baker, Architectural Digest, 31 Mar. 2026 Ideal for bedrooms, nurseries, apartments with older doors, and homes with hardwood or tile floors, this $4 draft stopper can stop the chilly air from entering, while also muffling outside noises and blocking dust, pollen, and pests. — Mariana Best, Better Homes & Gardens, 21 Feb. 2026 Kubiak found that easy to navigate with a conservative game plan in the season finale at the 49ers with a rushing attack that had 39 attempts for 180 yards while the Seahawks’ defense was muffling the opposition. — Jerry McDonald, Mercury News, 14 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for muffling
  1. muting
  2. wrapping
  3. stifling
  4. enveloping
  5. shrouding
  6. enclosing
  7. encasing
Verb
  • The Broncos’ defense will produce two takeaways, muting 14 receptions by the Rams’ tight ends and running backs.
    — Sam Jane, Denver Post, 26 Sep. 2026
  • Among several solutions such as time limits and muting notifications during certain hours, the changes include giving teens the option to choose to view a non-algorithmic social media feed that isn’t personalized.
    — Sonja Sharp, Los Angeles Times, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of muting
Verb
  • Katie Zacharia, the new White House press secretary, faced reporters for the first time Tuesday for a very brief turn at the lectern, taking a handful of questions before abruptly wrapping it up.
    — Michelle L. Price, Los Angeles Times, 13 Oct. 2026
  • The gold numbering, along with a single gold racing stripe wrapping around the armholes, and a distinct gold-and-white striping pattern running down the right side of both the jersey and the shorts.
    — Jon Root OutKick, FOXNews.com, 12 Oct. 2026
Definition of wrapping
Verb
  • The worm, however impossible to miss, is shoved, bumped, and pushed around with everyone else in the stifling subway car.
    — Deadline, Deadline, 14 Oct. 2026
  • The Canal+ Group’s shuttering of the Showmax streaming service earlier this year was just the latest example of how a distribution chokepoint is stifling Africa’s creative boom.
    — Christopher Vourlias, Variety, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of stifling
Verb
  • Deadly weekend Houthi attacks on Riyadh’s airport underscored the risk of war enveloping still more of the Middle East.
    — Prashant Rao, semafor.com, 12 Oct. 2026
  • Sinot gave Larsson’s eyes a wash of frosty white shimmer, extending the pale shadow all the way up to the brows and enveloping the inner corners to serve as a canvas for more crystals.
    — Marci Robin, Allure, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of enveloping
Verb
  • Congressional leaders, wired to protect their own and afraid of upsetting their narrow margins, are famous for shrouding ethics investigations in secrecy and dragging them out for years.
    — Mary Ellen Klas, Twin Cities, 23 Apr. 2026
  • Advertisement Israel has bombed oil depots in Tehran, shrouding the city in toxic black smoke, and attacked Iran’s South Pars gas field.
    — Miranda Jeyaretnam, Time, 1 Apr. 2026
Definition of shrouding
Verb
  • Each petal serves both structural and aesthetic purposes, enclosing a vast central hall that can accommodate up to 2,500 worshippers.
    — Kieron Marchese, Architectural Digest, 6 Oct. 2026
  • Nearby is The Birth, 2026, a ziggurat partly woven from bags of fertilizer, enclosing a film installation about the assembly of drones, shot in Cambodia, Thailand, and Vietnam.
    — Pablo Larios, Artforum, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of enclosing
Verb
  • Little Miner’s version isn’t so much a riff as an homage, with a flour tortilla encasing queso sauce, tortilla chips, chipotle aioli, lettuce, tomato, raw onion, sour cream and a choice of proteins.
    — Warren Rojas, Washington Post, 19 Aug. 2026
  • The spigots serve as injection ports, where crews can pump grout behind the tunnel wall, with the goal of coating and encasing the entire tunnel lining under the Newtown Creek in a waterproof layer, filling any cracks along the way.
    — Evan Simko-Bednarski, New York Daily News, 19 July 2026
Definition of encasing

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muffles
muffling
muffs
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Cite this Entry

“Muffling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/muffling. Accessed 19 Oct. 2026.

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