I. adjective
Etymology: Middle English, from present participle of smotheren to smother
1. : suffocating, stifling
smothering affection
smothering heat
2. : smoldering
• smoth·er·ing·ly adverb
II. noun
( -s )
Etymology: from gerund of smother (II)
: a disease of tree seedlings occurring especially in crowded nurseries and characterized by the growth of the leathery fruiting body of a fungus ( Thelephora terrestris ) about the seedling stem