muffle

And Mr. Knight is also superb as James tries to muffle his own fears the better to lessen his wife’s.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026

I watched as the woman cuffed the phone receiver, attempting, ironically, to muffle the private information she was giving to a 13-year-old.

From Slate ● Dec. 12, 2023

Neustadter, an executive producer here as well, notes, “When we meet Clare in our series, she’s trying to muffle her pain, but it’s always with her.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2023

They're so, so loud that it doesn't matter where you turn it on or try to muffle it, it's just super loud.

From Salon ● Mar. 7, 2023

I must not have heard her enter the house through the muffle.

From "Allegiant" by Veronica Roth

Mr. Orhan offsets the novel’s magical realism with plainspoken prose that muffles Dilara’s increasingly volatile desires.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 5, 2026

The visible clutter sets off a contagious, slightly embarrassed giggle, which she muffles with her hands.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 18, 2025

Gestational diabetes most commonly occurs during the third trimester of pregnancy when a woman’s body naturally muffles insulin signals, sparking labor difficulties for the woman and long-term afflictions for a newborn baby.

From Washington Times ● May 31, 2023

It dampens our desires and muffles our joy.

From Slate ● Feb. 10, 2021

The noise around me muffles, and the image in my mind of the five thousand dollars starts to waver until it finally blurs into something I no longer recognize.

From "Warcross" by Marie Lu

Collins stood outside for several agonizing minutes, hearing their muffled voices.

From Slate ● Sep. 17, 2026

A streak across the sky, then a muffled blast.

From Barron's ● Aug. 12, 2026

Full of sorrow and restraint, the opening verses are entombed by muffled synths before Liene explodes into an operatic wail of catharsis in the dying moments.

From BBC ● May 8, 2026

Then he heard muffled crying, and started to dig.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 17, 2025

He could hear the wooden planks of the stage creaking overhead, the distant, muffled voices of the actors, and laughter from the audience.

From "Chasing Lincoln's Killer" by James L. Swanson

"But a quantum computer acts like noise-canceling headphones that compare combinations of answers, amplifying the right ones while muffling the wrong ones."

From Science Daily ● Feb. 2, 2026

He dropped his face in his hands, muffling his voice.

From BBC ● Nov. 30, 2024

In front of Eirik Johnson’s photo diptychs, you wonder: Does snow — a thick, muffling blanket devoid of color — obscure or reveal?

From Seattle Times ● Dec. 20, 2023

Wintertime thunder can be harder to hear than in a summer storm because of the muffling effect of the snow, but it is the result of the same mechanics inside the storm cloud.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 24, 2023

I pull one of her pillows over my head, muffling my words.

From "Dumplin'" by Julie Murphy