QUELLING Synonyms: 77 Similar and Opposite Words

quelling

verb

present participle of quell

as in subduing

to put a stop to (something) by the use of force the National Guard was called in to help quell the late-night disturbances downtown

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in shushing

to stop the noise or speech of the principal held up her hand to quell the students so they could hear the urgent announcement

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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 quelling There is something instructive in the agent concluding a diatribe on quelling revolutionary violence with a note about feeling inspired. — Stephanie Wambugu, Vulture, 12 Oct. 2026 The break with Callaway was the first sign that Good Good’s attempts at quelling the crisis were not going well after Clark’s statement on social media Wednesday night. — Kyle Feldscher, CNN Money, 27 Aug. 2026 As Matt Reeves is hard at work in Gotham City, James Gunn is quelling some overeager fans about the timeline of the Batman trilogy. — Glenn Garner, Deadline, 6 Aug. 2026 Aside from Spain’s progress in quelling the fires this week, there are still active fires in France to consider, since the particulate matter could continue drifting across large portions of its neighboring nation. — T. Michelle Murphy, Time, 29 July 2026 Other ubiquitous Chinese deities, such as the regal Jade Emperor, the faithful warrior Guan Yu, the wondrous savior Mazu, and the demon-quelling Zhong Kui, fill both the popular imagination and the stuff of Daoist ritual. — Michael Naparstek, The Conversation, 6 July 2026 The very system itself - schooling and parenting - now operates on quelling agency. — Mimosa Jones Tunney, Forbes.com, 25 June 2026 The mosquitoes came out in droves at night, just before bed, quelling our ambitions of stargazing or watching for the northern lights. — John Bowe, Travel + Leisure, 11 June 2026 Owens, who tried to reach third, was gunned down by left fielder Brendan Brock, quelling the early threat. — Gary Bedore, Kansas City Star, 7 June 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for quelling

Verb

The school's head teacher, Krzysztof Ochmanski, was injured while subduing the teenager, officials said.

— James Cirrone, FOXNews.com, 8 Oct. 2026
The handful of Israeli passengers grappled with the copilot for several minutes before subduing him and binding his hands with the cord from a set of headphones.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 2 Oct. 2026

Definition of subduing

Verb

Tom Kim and Si Woo Kim went to 3-0 for the week with a crowd-shushing rally from 2 down to a 2-and-1 victory over Collin Morikawa and Wyndham Clark.

— ABC News, ABC News, 26 Sep. 2026
Trae Young won Madison Square Garden’s undying enmity in the 2021 playoffs for the Atlanta Hawks, punctuating game-breaking shots by shushing the crowd or bowing to the fans and waving goodbye.

— Leah Asmelash, CNN Money, 9 June 2026

Definition of shushing

Verb

After 20 years of suppressing his feelings, therapy helped Harry give himself permission to grieve and acknowledge his pain.

— Esther Lian, PEOPLE, 21 Oct. 2026
Embracing uncertainty does not mean ignoring danger, suppressing disappointment or insisting that every setback is positive.

— ABC News, ABC News, 17 Oct. 2026

Definition of suppressing

Verb

Patrick Mahomes finished the job by scrambling up the middle, simultaneously giving the Chiefs an early lead and quieting some doubts about his reconstructed ACL and LCL.

— Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 15 Sep. 2026
Use the words that suit the tone of the piece, and that might mean quieting your inner voice, or the voice of your mother.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 4 Sep. 2026

Definition of quieting

Verb

There has also been a steady rise in governments repressing people outside of their borders.

— Mary Lind, The Conversation, 21 Oct. 2026
Egyptian authorities alternated over the decades between tolerating and repressing the group, which was permitted to field candidates in elections for brief periods.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 2 Oct. 2026

Definition of repressing

Verb

That album, like the Dio Sabbath classics before it, was fine-tuned for metalhead appreciation, thick with crushing riffs and dramatic vocals.

— Brad Sanders, Pitchfork, 27 Oct. 2026
Elsewhere, Leipzig bounced back from heavy defeats against Bayern Munich and Real Madrid by crushing Elversberg 4-0.

— ABC News, ABC News, 24 Oct. 2026

Definition of crushing

Verb

The Broncos’ defense will produce two takeaways, muting 14 receptions by the Rams’ tight ends and running backs.

— Sam Jane, Denver Post, 26 Sep. 2026
Among several solutions such as time limits and muting notifications during certain hours, the changes include giving teens the option to choose to view a non-algorithmic social media feed that isn’t personalized.

— Sonja Sharp, Los Angeles Times, 26 Aug. 2026

Definition of muting

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quelled

quelling

quells

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“Quelling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/quelling. Accessed 27 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of quelling

verb

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