swamped 1 of 2

adjective

1
as in knee-deep

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words
2
as in flooded

Related Words

Dissimilar Words

swamped

2 of 2

verb

past tense of swamp
1
as in engulfed
to cover with a flood the boat was swamped by the huge wave has been swamped with paperwork since she returned from vacation

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in overwhelmed
to subject to incapacitating emotional or mental stress parents feeling swamped by work and family obligations

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 swamped
Verb
Prosecutors said Hernandez piloted the boat into a swell and had accelerated the throttle to try to pass through it until the swell swamped the bow of the boat, capsizing it immediately, a complaint alleged. — Martin Goillandeau, CNN Money, 20 Aug. 2026 Baxter swamped Elizabeth Accomando, 59% to 41%, in the Republican primary for this westernmost seat on the seven-member commission, despite a string of missteps that would disqualify most other candidates. — Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 20 Aug. 2026 Families scrambled to emergency shelters as their homes were swamped with flood waters. — Marissa Meador, IndyStar, 16 Aug. 2026 According to court documents, Manuel Hernandez, the tour boat captain, made a U-turn and a swell swamped the bow, capsizing the boat with 14 people on board. — Adi Guajardo, CBS News, 12 Aug. 2026 The Word document was like a trail swamped with mud after torrential rain. — Literary Hub, 6 Aug. 2026 The boat rolled up out of the sea, but was practically submerged, swamped and sluggish, and the skipper floated free of her. — James D. Oxley, Outdoor Life, 5 Aug. 2026 When the waves reach their peak, La Concha is reduced to a tiny strip of sand swamped by tourists, so at high tide choose one of the other two city beaches for sunbathing. — Marti Buckley, Condé Nast Traveler, 3 Aug. 2026 Heavy rains earlier this week swamped other areas of New York as well as New Jersey and Pennsylvania, flooding streets and leading to water rescues. — ABC News, 30 July 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for swamped
  1. knee-deep
  2. flooded
  3. engulfed
  4. overwhelmed
  5. occupied
  6. submerged
  7. devastated
  8. busy
Adjective
  • Gogoi said floodwaters around her uncle’s village Hulang Katoni rose from knee-deep to neck-deep in about 30 minutes.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 18 Aug. 2026
  • The Russian bombs hit a pipe and the area was flooded in knee-deep water.
    — Kayla Hayempour, NBC news, 17 Aug. 2026
Definition of knee-deep
Adjective
  • Video shows teams of workers yanking ropes to ferry locals who were stranded on an embankment flanked by a flooded river.
    — Robert McGreevy, FOXNews.com, 2 Sep. 2026
  • At least 82 people were rescued from the flooded area, most by helicopter, authorities said.
    — Bill Hutchinson, ABC News, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of flooded
Verb
  • Fire engulfed Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences, a major government hospital in Islamabad, on Wednesday.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 30 Aug. 2026
  • Chinese state media reported there is no sign of survivors at a border crossing which was engulfed by the flood wave.
    — Sophie Tanno, CNN Money, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of engulfed
Verb
  • Reflecting on her journey, Jones told me last year that her best career advice is to stay open to new experiences and not get overwhelmed by distant goals.
    — Sheryl Estrada, Fortune, 28 Aug. 2026
  • My mother was never one for parting phrases, mainly because she was overwhelmed by a form of timidity that verged on self-erasure.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of overwhelmed
Adjective
  • Osder visited Israel and the occupied West Bank and came to understand his heritage with a new sense of privilege and responsibility.
    — Matthew Carey, Deadline, 31 Aug. 2026
  • Jerusalem — Israeli settlers stormed a Palestinian village in the occupied West Bank on Saturday and seized a home while its owner was inside in the latest brazen settler attack in the area.
    — Oren Liebermann, CNN Money, 30 Aug. 2026
Definition of occupied
Adjective
  • Police said the plane will remain submerged until FAA investigators can examine it.
    — Matthew Ablon, CBS News, 22 Aug. 2026
  • But some of the reservoir’s underwater history is well known and will remain submerged for some time yet.
    — Elizabeth Wolfe, CNN Money, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of submerged
Verb
  • In 2005, when Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans, hundreds of thousands fled to Houston.
    — David Moin, Footwear News, 2 Sep. 2026
  • It was found in Shasta County, in an area that was devastated in the Carr Fire in 2018.
    — Sean Timberlake, Sacbee.com, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of devastated
Adjective
  • Then, the Iran war started, resulting in massive disruption to the Strait of Hormuz, once one of the world's busiest oil-shipping lanes.
    — Anniek Bao, CNBC, 3 Sep. 2026
  • Palacios brings plenty to Ipswich with and without the ball, the statement signing in a busy window who could go a long way to keeping them up.
    — Thom Harris, New York Times, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of busy

Browse Nearby Words

swamp
swamped
swamper
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Swamped.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/swamped. Accessed 5 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

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

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

A List of Most Commonly Confused Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

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

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

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Sept. 4
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke
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
anagrams on a chalk board
Word Builder Quiz Vol. 2 Pick the letter that when added to a word will ma...
See All