skunked

verb

past tense of skunk
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

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 skunked That means two out of three Minnesota turkey hunters are going skunked this spring. — Alex Robinson, Outdoor Life, 16 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for skunked
  1. bombed
  2. defeated
  3. stung
  4. upset
  5. mastered
  6. cheated
  7. trounced
  8. overcame
Verb
  • Helldivers 2 was bombed with hundreds of thousands of negative reviews, and Sony reversed the policy within days.
    — Paul Tassi, Forbes.com, 2 July 2026
  • After easing through the first three innings, Bryan Reynolds hit a double off the top of the left field fence and Valdez bombed one to left to cut the Phillies' lead to 5-2.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 30 June 2026
Definition of bombed
Verb
  • Norway defeated Brazil, while England emerged victorious against Mexico, taking them both through to the quarter-finals.
    — Leonie Kidd, CNBC, 6 July 2026
  • Without a pole, hook, or tree to climb, squirrels are left defeated and bereft.
    — Stephanie Osmanski, Better Homes & Gardens, 6 July 2026
Definition of defeated
Verb
  • Democrats are still stung by Rogan’s nearly three-hour Trump interview in the final weeks of the 2024 campaign.
    — Steven Sloan, Los Angeles Times, 30 June 2026
  • Having dominated most of his players in table tennis over the years, Gadowsky is still stung after meeting his match.
    — John Wawrow, Chicago Tribune, 26 June 2026
Definition of stung
Verb
  • France will play Paraguay in the round of 16 on Saturday, facing the team that eliminated Germany in a shocking upset during a penalty shootout on Monday.
    — Doha Madani, NBC news, 1 July 2026
  • Unfortunately for Freddy’s team, Germany was upset by Paraguay in a penalty shootout in the round of 32, ending their World Cup title hopes in the first knockout stage.
    — Scott Thompson, FOXNews.com, 1 July 2026
Definition of upset
Verb
  • Faculty across the country increasingly report spending more time teaching skills that many students once mastered before arriving on campus.
    — Scott White, Forbes.com, 5 July 2026
  • Emma Chamberlain has mastered the art of the messy textured pixie.
    — Genesis Rivas, InStyle, 1 July 2026
Definition of mastered
Verb
  • Hell may hath no fury like a Red Devils squad feeling cheated after the shocking FIFA decision to allow Balogun to play tonight in Seattle.
    — Ben Church, CNN Money, 6 July 2026
  • Billups is accused of participating in a conspiracy to fix high-stakes card games tied to La Cosa Nostra organized crime families that cheated unsuspecting gamblers out of at least $7 million.
    — Ed White, Twin Cities, 29 June 2026
Definition of cheated
Verb
  • In Roberts’ Dodgers debut, on opening day at Petco Park, his team trounced the Padres 15-0.
    — Maddie Lee, Los Angeles Times, 28 June 2026
  • That’s where three University of Iowa economists — Robert Forsythe, George Neumann and Forrest Nelson — met for food and beers and kvetching about just how badly the polls had missed the mark on the Michigan Democratic primary the day before, when Jesse Jackson absolutely trounced Michael Dukakis.
    — Allison Morrow, CNN Money, 21 June 2026
Definition of trounced
Verb
  • The Knicks overcame several double-digit point deficits to win the 2026 NBA championship, their first in 53 years.
    — Sara Germano, Sportico.com, 30 June 2026
  • Heide Hafner, Miss Subways 1976, overcame obstacles like sexism to earn her pilot's license.
    — Noelle Lilley, CBS News, 30 June 2026
Definition of overcame

Browse Nearby Words

skunk
skunked
skunking
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Skunked.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/skunked. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

One-Word Oxymorons: Bittersweet, Spendthrift, and More

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
hangman letters and game
Hangman Lightning Round Figure out which word fits in the blanks.
See All