as in to frustrate
to prevent from achieving a goal
finally checkmated the billionaire in his attempt to take over the movie studio
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in deterrence
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 checkmate
Dan Pompei, The Athletic, 26 Aug. 2024
In the last episode, Mya checkmated Tommy with one simple question and has proven her wisdom in the pretrial phase.
—Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 17 July 2024
Elizabeth Marie Himchak, San Diego Union-Tribune, 4 Feb. 2025
The scene sees Martin's character, named George, put Redford's in checkmate with some help from series star Zahn McClarnon, who portrays Navajo tribal police officer Joe Leaphorn on the series.
—Tommy McArdle, People.com, 10 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for checkmate
Verb
Brown checkmates most defensive backs and should still post big numbers if Philly’s offense runs smoothly.
—Dan Pompei, The Athletic, 26 Aug. 2024
In the last episode, Mya checkmated Tommy with one simple question and has proven her wisdom in the pretrial phase.
—Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 17 July 2024
Noun
Del Norte High’s chess team members have increasingly declared checkmate against their opponents, with the team capturing a third-place regional tournament award just four years after it was formed.
—Elizabeth Marie Himchak, San Diego Union-Tribune, 4 Feb. 2025
The scene sees Martin's character, named George, put Redford's in checkmate with some help from series star Zahn McClarnon, who portrays Navajo tribal police officer Joe Leaphorn on the series.
—Tommy McArdle, People.com, 10 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for checkmate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for checkmate
Verb
-
The naming practices can frustrate efforts to track the chemicals in food, to measure how much of the stuff people are taking in, and even to figure out precisely which chemicals a scientific study evaluated, researchers said.—
David Hilzenrath,
CNN Money,
19 May 2025
-
Alex Caruso, the 6-foot-5 defensive savant who spent so much of the evening frustrating the 6-11 Nikola Jokić, was the real MVP of the night (Jokić had 20 points on 5-of-9 shooting, with nine rebounds, seven assists and five turnovers).—
Sam Amick,
New York Times,
19 May 2025
Noun
-
The more important goal here is to achieve deterrence, similar to the stalemate in the Cold War with the Soviet Union that was based on nuclear weapons.—
Iain Boyd,
The Conversation,
22 May 2025
-
Autonomous systems capable of deterrence without human vulnerability.—
Amir Husain,
Forbes.com,
20 May 2025
Verb
-
After a strikeout, Luis Castillo hit a foul fly that Moises Alou jumped for, only to have his efforts thwarted by a fan making a play on the ball himself.—
Steve Svekis,
Sun Sentinel,
18 May 2025
-
This is not the only recent livestock smuggling attempt thwarted at a U.S.-Mexico border crossing in California.—
Clara Harter,
Los Angeles Times,
16 May 2025
Verb
-
What’s more, the double-stitched seams and baffle box design keep lumps at bay.—
Nashia Baker,
Architectural Digest,
28 May 2025
-
The owner shared a video of the car veering left, a video that has Tesla examiner’s baffled.—
Peter Lyon,
Forbes.com,
25 May 2025
Noun
-
The prospects for success have been enhanced by Israel’s recent neutralization of Iranian proxies and air defenses, which gives Washington a chance to expand on the template of the Abraham Accords by fostering Israeli-Saudi normalization.—
A. Wess Mitchell,
Foreign Affairs,
22 Apr. 2025
-
So social media sort of accelerated the normalization, or neutralization, of this word.—
Sam Reed,
Glamour,
15 Apr. 2025
Verb
-
And while Maresca’s position as head coach isn’t greatly consolidated by winning the least of them, defeat to Betis would have hurt him.—
Phil Hay,
New York Times,
29 May 2025
-
Florida is 48-15 on the season and defeated its conference foe, Georgia, in the Super Regional.—
Kilty Cleary,
MSNBC Newsweek,
29 May 2025
Verb
-
Keep clear of puddles - Driving through puddles or low rainwater areas can cause vehicles to hydroplane or skid out of control Maintain a safe distance from large vehicles - Trucks or buses can produce a water spray that hampers visibility.—
NC Weather Bot,
Charlotte Observer,
29 May 2025
-
Online shopping has been severely hampered at the retailer due to outages to its website that are expected to last into July.—
Glenn Taylor,
Sourcing Journal,
28 May 2025
Noun
-
The nullification of his diploma disqualifies Imamoglu from running for president, and the terrorism charge removes him from the mayor’s office.—
Gonul Tol,
Foreign Affairs,
21 Mar. 2025
-
Forgetting is a step toward nullification.—
Mark Z. Barabak,
Los Angeles Times,
19 Jan. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Checkmate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/checkmate. Accessed 1 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share