1
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
2
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
3
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
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Recent Examples of skunked
That means two out of three Minnesota turkey hunters are going skunked this spring.
—
Alex Robinson, Outdoor Life, 16 Apr. 2026
Alex Robinson, Outdoor Life, 16 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for skunked
Verb
-
Imagine being a parent of one of the one hundred and seventy-five girls who died when their school was bombed.—
Charles Bethea,
New Yorker,
26 Apr. 2026
-
That put out of business one of the country’s largest Klan organizations, the same group that bombed Birmingham’s 16th Street Baptist Church in 1963, killing four Black girls.—
Josh Meyer,
USA Today,
25 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Atletico earned a spot in the final four courtesy of a quarter-final victory against Spanish rivals Barcelona, while Arsenal defeated Portuguese side Sporting CP.—
The Athletic Live Team,
New York Times,
27 Apr. 2026
-
Huarte defeated Woodbridge senior Brady Tallakson 7-6 (3), 6-1 in the CIF boys final at Libbey Park to capture the title one year after falling in the championship match.—
Dan Albano,
Oc Register,
26 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The Nuggets have lost plenty of playoff games the past two springs, but few have stung like this.—
Troy Renck,
Denver Post,
24 Apr. 2026
-
Meyer acknowledged the logic behind preparing Nick Bosa for the NFL Draft but admitted the choice still stung as the Buckeyes chased a title.—
Chantz Martin,
FOXNews.com,
23 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Caloric restriction, for example, upset her menstruation.—
David Oliver,
USA Today,
26 Apr. 2026
-
Coral upset experienced veterans of the sport, Christina Gasparich from Los Angeles, and Calla Allison from San Clemente, both of whom have been on the USA National BodySurfing Team for the past three years in-a-row.—
News Release,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
25 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Over the course of a 60-year career, director Ted Kotcheff mastered just about every genre there was to conquer.—
Jim Hemphill,
IndieWire,
29 Apr. 2026
-
Such are the perks of having mastered the form early, while amassing the cultural capital to remake pop in her image.—
New York Times,
New York Times,
28 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The reportedly yearlong relationship is notable in that, after their split in 2015, Stocking posted and deleted tweets saying the basketball player cheated, per The New York Post.—
Taijuan Moorman,
USA Today,
27 Apr. 2026
-
This is the same team that cheated and got caught how many times, going back to Bill Belichick and golden boy Tom Brady (Deflategate)?—
Voice of the People,
New York Daily News,
26 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Villegas, a Marine Corps veteran from the Northwest Side who has been 36th Ward alderman since 2015, once had his sights set on Washington but was trounced in the 2022 race for the 3rd Congressional District on the Northwest Side.—
Jake Sheridan,
Chicago Tribune,
15 Apr. 2026
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Peter Magyar’s center-right Tisza trounced Orban’s Fidesz in parliamentary elections by a margin of nearly three-to-one, a stunning turn after so many years of Orban consolidating power with extrajudicial tools like gerrymandering, court-packing and the co-optation of an independent media.—
Steven Zeitchik,
HollywoodReporter,
13 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The Trojans overcame a 9-8 third-quarter deficit to gain a repeat visit to the final.—
Glae Thien,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
27 Apr. 2026
-
The Michael Jackson movie overcame poor reviews and production problems to achieve a record-breaking opening weekend at the box office.—
Brendan Morrow,
USA Today,
26 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Skunked.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/skunked. Accessed 2 May. 2026.
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