Noah Webster
Smother
SMOTHER, verb transitive [allied perhaps to smoke.]
1. To suffocate of extinguish life by causing smoke or dust to enter the lungs; to stifle.
2. To suffocate or extinguish by closely covering, and be the exclustion of air; as, to smother a child in bed.
3. To suppress; to stifle; as, to smother the light of the understanding.
SMOTHER, noun
1. Smoke; thick dust.
2. A state of suppression. [Not in use.]