SKUNKED Synonyms: 172 Similar and Opposite Words

skunked

verb

past tense of skunk

as in bombed

to defeat by a large margin we ended up skunking them, as our goalie was able to prevent the other team from scoring a single goal

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

as in defeated

to achieve a victory over our football team consistently skunks our traditional rivals Thanksgiving after Thanksgiving

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in stung

to rob by the use of trickery or threats unwilling to let suppliers skunk him, the restaurant owner inspected every shipment before signing off on it

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 skunked Last year as the trade deadline approached, the Giants were 54-49 before getting skunked on a six-game homestand against the New York Mets and Pittsburgh Pirates. — Andrew Baggarly, New York Times, 15 July 2026 That means two out of three Minnesota turkey hunters are going skunked this spring. — Alex Robinson, Outdoor Life, 16 Apr. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for skunked

Verb

In an interview with Inside Edition on Tuesday, store owner Adam Rubin said that his store has been review-bombed since Clarkson took to social media and named the store, and employees and surrounding businesses have been harassed.

— Payton Turkeltaub, Variety, 14 Oct. 2026
The Houthis bombed the corporate HQ of Saudi Aramco in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, on Tuesday, officials said.

— Jim Edwards, Fortune, 14 Oct. 2026

Definition of bombed

Verb

French defeated Republican incumbent Jim Wright in a May Republican primary runoff.

— Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 18 Oct. 2026
That’ll be particularly important after Paxton defeated Cornyn in a brutal primary where Senate Republicans and other Cornyn allies spent more than $90 million in his defense and attacked Paxton as unfit for office.

— Matthew Choi, Washington Post, 18 Oct. 2026

Definition of defeated

Verb

All of a sudden, Bass was a staggering champion lunging at a revived Raman, who swung and stung and ducked the way only a hungry up-and-comer can.

— Lorraine Ali, Los Angeles Times, 14 Oct. 2026
The loss to Ole Miss three weeks ago stung, but was not unexpected.

— Austin Perry OutKick, FOXNews.com, 11 Oct. 2026

Definition of stung

Verb

This year’s show was trounced by the first Monday Night Football game of the year between the Kansas City Chiefs and Denver Broncos on ESPN.

— ABC News, ABC News, 6 Oct. 2026
Shares of the drone manufacturer jumped 10% after first-quarter results trounced estimates.

— Michelle Fox,Darla Mercado, CFP®, CNBC, 10 Sep. 2026

Definition of trounced

Verb

Complicating things is the current Administration, which has mastered the art of using those message-delivery systems to spread doubt and discontent and suspicion.

— Deborah Treisman, New Yorker, 18 Oct. 2026
For a blueprint, Johnson points to a handful of NBA stars who have mastered the art of seeing the game unfold a step or two ahead of everyone else — Draymond Green, LeBron James, Kawhi Leonard and, yes, former Spurs great Tim Duncan.

— Jeff McDonald, San Antonio Express-News, 16 Oct. 2026

Definition of mastered

Verb

As Gabe yells that Morgan cheated and broke up the family, a grin starts to spread across Nick’s and Serena’s faces.

— Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 16 Oct. 2026
The Dubas front office cheated for offence in a sense too, deciding to buck the trend by building from centre ice backwards and not drafting/developing top d-men.

— James Mirtle, New York Times, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of cheated

Verb

The Cubs were upset again by the Marlins in the 2020 wild-card series, losing the series in a two-game sweep.

— Kori Rumore, Chicago Tribune, 14 Oct. 2026
Many of those wins have been agonizing for the Bears to endure like when TCU upset a top-10 Baylor squad in 2021 or when the Horned Frogs scored a walk-off field goal the very next season in Waco to keep their undefeated season alive.

— Steven Johnson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 14 Oct. 2026

Definition of upset

Verb

The move comes after the Astros overcame a plethora of injuries to win the AL West with an 81-81 record and become the first team in Major League Baseball history to reach the postseason without a winning record.

— ABC News, ABC News, 14 Oct. 2026
The Cardinals overcame a 2-0 deficit to beat the Dodgers, 4-2, in the NLCS, while the Royals rallied from 2-0 down to defeat the Blue Jays, 4-3, in the ALCS.

— OutKick, FOXNews.com, 14 Oct. 2026

Definition of overcame

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“Skunked.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/skunked. Accessed 21 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of skunked

verb

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