variants
or smouldered
1
as in snarled
to be excited or emotionally stirred up with anger
She smoldered when first learning of her son's misbehavior at school, but had calmed down by the time he arrived home.
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2
as in blazed
to be on fire usually with smoke but few flames
They look forward to those long summer nights telling stories beside a smoldering campfire.
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Recent Examples of smoldered
Crews work to uncover and cool unused coal which has smoldered for 20 years near Florence, Colorado.
—
Logan Smith, CBS News, 11 Apr. 2026
Her decision to stop the publication of a 60 Minutes piece about a Salvadoran prison that had been cleared by others at the network sparked an internal fire that smoldered for weeks until the story eventually aired.
—Max Tani, semafor.com, 30 Mar. 2026
For about a week, the fire smoldered at low intensity, doing its work on a patch of roughly 120 acres.
—New York Times, 16 Mar. 2026
The devices smoldered but did not explode.
—Daily News Staff, New York Daily News, 9 Mar. 2026
Oil depots in Tehran smoldered following overnight strikes by Israel.
—Alex Veiga, Los Angeles Times, 9 Mar. 2026
Oil depots in Tehran smoldered following overnight strikes by Israel.
—Elaine Kurtenbach, Chicago Tribune, 8 Mar. 2026
Regional anger grows over strikes The war toll on civilian targets grew as Bahrain accused Iran of striking a desalination plant vital to drinking water supplies, and oil depots in Tehran smoldered following overnight Israeli strikes.
—Dallas Morning News, 8 Mar. 2026
The Griselda actress smoldered in a bright red strapless gown with a plunging sweetheart neckline, a corset-style bodice, and a form-fitting silhouette that subtly flared out into a mermaid design around her knees.
—Lara Walsh, InStyle, 12 Jan. 2026
Logan Smith, CBS News, 11 Apr. 2026
Her decision to stop the publication of a 60 Minutes piece about a Salvadoran prison that had been cleared by others at the network sparked an internal fire that smoldered for weeks until the story eventually aired.
—Max Tani, semafor.com, 30 Mar. 2026
For about a week, the fire smoldered at low intensity, doing its work on a patch of roughly 120 acres.
—New York Times, 16 Mar. 2026
The devices smoldered but did not explode.
—Daily News Staff, New York Daily News, 9 Mar. 2026
Oil depots in Tehran smoldered following overnight strikes by Israel.
—Alex Veiga, Los Angeles Times, 9 Mar. 2026
Oil depots in Tehran smoldered following overnight strikes by Israel.
—Elaine Kurtenbach, Chicago Tribune, 8 Mar. 2026
Regional anger grows over strikes The war toll on civilian targets grew as Bahrain accused Iran of striking a desalination plant vital to drinking water supplies, and oil depots in Tehran smoldered following overnight Israeli strikes.
—Dallas Morning News, 8 Mar. 2026
The Griselda actress smoldered in a bright red strapless gown with a plunging sweetheart neckline, a corset-style bodice, and a form-fitting silhouette that subtly flared out into a mermaid design around her knees.
—Lara Walsh, InStyle, 12 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for smoldered
Verb
-
The talks planned for Saturday come as much of the world is on edge over a war that has snarled crucial energy exports through the Strait of Hormuz, clouded the global economic picture and left thousands dead across the Middle East.—
Munir Ahmed,
Chicago Tribune,
24 Apr. 2026
-
Onshore projects can get snarled in land permitting issues, political blowback, and policy volatility; offshore projects, in contrast, can just get moved somewhere else.—
Nicholas Gordon,
Fortune,
23 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Bright yellow and red silk blazed through the green leaves of the trees in the distance.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
1 May 2026
-
Sabastian Sawe blazed a trail to history in under 2 hours on Sunday at the London Marathon.—
Ryan Gaydos,
FOXNews.com,
26 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The verdict on the lesser charge angered Diller’s colleagues in the NYPD.—
John Annese,
New York Daily News,
27 Apr. 2026
-
Trump faces record-low approval ratings, while Washington’s war on Iran, which has sent US gasoline prices spiking, has further angered voters.—
Jeronimo Gonzalez,
semafor.com,
21 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Then the Nuggets burned themselves with a bad rotation in help defense.—
Bennett Durando,
Denver Post,
1 May 2026
-
The network later crashed and burned when Jim was convicted in 1989 of defrauding supporters of his PTL ministry of more than $150 million, including a $265,000 payment to church secretary Hahn to keep quiet about their affair.—
Angela Andaloro,
PEOPLE,
1 May 2026
Verb
-
The loss in at the Commerce City, Colorado, stadium snapped a three-game shutout streak for the Denver Summit (1-3-2).—
ABC News,
ABC News,
26 Apr. 2026
-
So were four others in a 7-4 Bombers loss that snapped an eight-game winning streak.—
Gary Phillips,
Hartford Courant,
26 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
At the opening night of the Public Theater's The Merchant of Venice in February 1995, the stars glowed.—
Kate Hogan,
PEOPLE,
24 Apr. 2026
-
Dubbed the largest photographs in the world, the images were 18 feet by 60 feet and, backlit with a mile of tubing, glowed.—
Marcia Greenwood,
USA Today,
15 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The baby leaves can be eaten raw or steamed like spinach.—
Arricca Elin SanSone,
Southern Living,
22 Apr. 2026
-
Sometimes the reception to my style was not ideal, especially when judges would clock my handmade or altered garments as cheap or not properly steamed.—
Gabe Montesanti,
PEOPLE,
19 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Uneasy laughter flickered about the ballroom.—
Andrea Castillo,
Los Angeles Times,
26 Apr. 2026
-
The lights flickered on screen, and then my room went dark.—
Sheena Vasani,
The Verge,
25 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Smoldered.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/smoldered. Accessed 2 May. 2026.
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