1
as in stifled
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 wrapped
to surround or cover closely
the airport had been muffled in fog all morning long
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in muted
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Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of muffled
Samira Asma-Sadeque, PEOPLE, 14 Oct. 2025
Divers have told tales of muffled voices, phantom lights and shadows, and other eerie encounters during their time beneath the sea.
—Beth Luberecki, USA Today, 11 Oct. 2025
The muffled, percussive sounds of the firing range could be heard through the walls, and my body tensed with every pop.
—Rachel Monroe, New Yorker, 16 Sep. 2025
The iPhone’s sounds a bit muffled.
—Jan Wagner, San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 Sep. 2025
Starting with a muffled guitar refrain, the sound gradually builds intensity, clearly expressing the soaring emotions.
—Billboard Japan, Billboard, 3 Sep. 2019
Lucien Bruggeman, ABC News, 14 Oct. 2025
The summer noise of saplings and shrubs and bug nests and grass and flowers had been muffled by the snow.
—Hazlitt, 8 Oct. 2025
This is the perfect opportunity for the Business Roundtable to advocate for its members in a forceful, direct challenge to the administration, but it has been perplexingly muffled.
—Jason Ma, Fortune, 21 Sep. 2025
That should tug on our hearts since Willa’s worth caring for, but the emotional heft between dad and daughter gets muffled since there’s just not enough oxygen given to those scenes.
—Randy Myers, Mercury News, 19 Sep. 2025
Robbie hoped their full mouths muffled the sound.
—Rachel McRady, PEOPLE, 16 Sep. 2025
While Hazel Avenue is a busy street, traffic cannot be heard from inside the house and is muffled in the front yard.
—David Caraccio, Sacbee.com, 6 Sep. 2025
Wind and road noise were nicely muted with the top up, and thanks to the 911’s sleek figure and retracting wind deflector—which doesn’t automatically deploy, thankfully—wind noise was impressively muffled at highway pace.
—Peter Nelson, Forbes.com, 25 Aug. 2025
The arms would go into the sleeves and for a moment their head and face were muffled in the garment.
—Rachel Cusk, New Yorker, 24 Aug. 2025
Verb
The woman's muffled screams are heard one more time before the video ends.
—Samira Asma-Sadeque, PEOPLE, 14 Oct. 2025
Divers have told tales of muffled voices, phantom lights and shadows, and other eerie encounters during their time beneath the sea.
—Beth Luberecki, USA Today, 11 Oct. 2025
The muffled, percussive sounds of the firing range could be heard through the walls, and my body tensed with every pop.
—Rachel Monroe, New Yorker, 16 Sep. 2025
The iPhone’s sounds a bit muffled.
—Jan Wagner, San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 Sep. 2025
Starting with a muffled guitar refrain, the sound gradually builds intensity, clearly expressing the soaring emotions.
—Billboard Japan, Billboard, 3 Sep. 2019
Adjective
The audio is muffled and at times difficult to discern.
—Lucien Bruggeman, ABC News, 14 Oct. 2025
The summer noise of saplings and shrubs and bug nests and grass and flowers had been muffled by the snow.
—Hazlitt, 8 Oct. 2025
This is the perfect opportunity for the Business Roundtable to advocate for its members in a forceful, direct challenge to the administration, but it has been perplexingly muffled.
—Jason Ma, Fortune, 21 Sep. 2025
That should tug on our hearts since Willa’s worth caring for, but the emotional heft between dad and daughter gets muffled since there’s just not enough oxygen given to those scenes.
—Randy Myers, Mercury News, 19 Sep. 2025
Robbie hoped their full mouths muffled the sound.
—Rachel McRady, PEOPLE, 16 Sep. 2025
While Hazel Avenue is a busy street, traffic cannot be heard from inside the house and is muffled in the front yard.
—David Caraccio, Sacbee.com, 6 Sep. 2025
Wind and road noise were nicely muted with the top up, and thanks to the 911’s sleek figure and retracting wind deflector—which doesn’t automatically deploy, thankfully—wind noise was impressively muffled at highway pace.
—Peter Nelson, Forbes.com, 25 Aug. 2025
The arms would go into the sleeves and for a moment their head and face were muffled in the garment.
—Rachel Cusk, New Yorker, 24 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for muffled
Verb
-
The expletives aired uncensored during the NBC live telecast and Peacock’s simulcast but were muted during the West Coast broadcast and in versions later posted online, including on YouTube, according to the New York Post.—
Mitchell Peters,
Billboard,
19 Oct. 2025
-
Leaf-peeping season has arrived in the Northeast and beyond, but weeks of drought have muted this year’s autumn colors, and sent leaves fluttering to the ground earlier than usual.—
Jessica Coacci,
Fortune,
14 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Police reportedly located the woman after reviewing a two-second security camera video clip, in which she was allegedly seen on a city sidewalk carrying something that appeared to be wrapped in a bundle and holding it as a person would typically hold a baby.—
Madison E. Goldberg,
PEOPLE,
23 Oct. 2025
-
But some of its power remains wrapped in mystique.—
Rustin Dodd,
New York Times,
23 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
For the filling, start by spreading the crush with softened cream cheese.—
Sarah Martens,
Better Homes & Gardens,
25 Oct. 2025
-
The latest autumnal trend, vintage prep, is all about embracing softened classics like plaid, brass, heirloom finds, vintage linens, and botanical prints.—
Lauren Jones,
Southern Living,
6 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Moving guys on and off the field delayed Dowdle’s impact and stifled Hubbard’s opportunity for beat-by-beat momentum.—
DIAMOND VENCES,
Charlotte Observer,
26 Oct. 2025
-
Its key interest rate is at 17 percent, but between October 2024 and June 2025, it was set at 21 percent to curb inflation, prompting criticism from business leaders that this rate stifled investment.—
Brendan Cole,
MSNBC Newsweek,
22 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
This is not even the first time in the past year that Tyler’s old material has resurfaced online, spawning a familiar ouroboros of online discourse, shrouded in the language of accountability and well-meaning politics, that mostly serves to feed the beast of online engagement.—
Jeff Ihaza,
Rolling Stone,
21 Oct. 2025
-
The next movie from the multi-Oscar winning Everything Everywhere All at Once duo is shrouded in secrecy.—
Anthony D'Alessandro,
Deadline,
15 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Sheets of mist enveloped the mountain, sliding past each other.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
21 Oct. 2025
-
The pork is perfectly seasoned and charred, then enveloped in a thick homemade corn tortilla that keeps its structure no matter how much tomatillo salsa is added.—
Natalie Hoy,
Southern Living,
19 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Encounters with Skinwalkers are often described in hushed tones, and the belief in their existence persists.—
Tiffany Acosta,
AZCentral.com,
17 Oct. 2025
-
Just downhill from their lunch spot, Carl and Teig made a plan in hushed tones that would take them back to camp by sunset.—
Devon O’Neil,
Outside,
15 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Southern California Edison, the utility that operates the now-shuttered San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station, has released to the public some 1,749 images taken by robotic cameras during inspections of canisters enclosed in casks that store radioactive waste at the plant.—
Rob Nikolewski,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
22 Oct. 2025
-
The incident took place in an area enclosed by a large decorative cutout designed to resemble a porthole in the side of the ship.—
Sarah Rumpf-Whitten , Adriana James-Rodil,
FOXNews.com,
21 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Muffled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/muffled. Accessed 29 Oct. 2025.
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