conceal or hide; "smother a yawn"; "muffle one's anger"; "strangle a yawn"
envelop completely; "smother the meat in gravy"
deprive of the oxygen necessary for combustion; "smother fires"
deprive of oxygen and prevent from breathing; "Othello smothered Desdemona with a pillow"; "The child suffocated herself with a plastic bag that the parents had left on the floor"
form an impenetrable cover over; "the butter cream smothered the cake"
put down by force or intimidation; "The government quashes any attempt of an uprising"; "China keeps down her dissidents very efficiently"; "The rich landowners subjugated the peasants working the land"
showing humiliation or submissiveness; "an abject apology"
of the most contemptible kind; "abject cowardice"; "a low stunt to pull"; "a low-down sneak"; "his miserable treatment of his family"; "You miserable skunk!"; "a scummy rabble"; "a scurvy trick"
most unfortunate or miserable; "the most abject slaves joined in the revolt"; "abject poverty"
showing utter resignation or hopelessness; "abject surrender"