quiescent
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of quiescent
First recorded in 1600–10; from Latin quiēscent- (stem of quiēscēns, present participle of quiēscere ), equivalent to qui-, base meaning “rest, quiet” + -ēsc- inchoative suffix + -ent- -ent
Explanation
The adjective quiescent means "being quiet and still," like the quiescent moments lying in a hammock on a beautiful summer Sunday. To be quiescent, pronounced "qwhy-ESS-ent," is to be quiet, resting, which is exactly what its Latin origin quiescens means: In our busy world, it is hard to find a place to be quiescent. It has a second meaning: "causing no symptoms." For example, if a disease is quiescent, you probably won't know you have it. And finally, quiescent can mean "not activated," like quiescent cleaning products that don't get the stains out.
Vocabulary lists containing quiescent
40 SAT words Beginning with "Q"
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Mellow Out: Synonyms for "Calm"
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Shhhh! Synonyms for "Quiet"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Using publicly available data, the team created detailed maps of breast cancer tumors and found distinct clusters of quiescent cells surrounded by other cells that may serve as a protective barrier.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 6, 2026
“Core inflation away from the fast-moving segments that are impacted by energy have been very quiescent, and I think we are going to continue to see that,” Bessent said.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 4, 2026
“Core inflation away from the fast-moving segments that are impacted by energy have been very quiescent, and I think we are going to continue to see that,” he said.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 4, 2026
For good reason then, establishing what causes a galaxy to move between its two states -- quiescent and star-forming -- is one of the greatest challenges in astrophysics.
From Science Daily ● Mar. 5, 2024
By the late innings of the game the rest of the room—a few laggard coals glowed orange beneath the fireplace grate—lay sleeping in soft, quiescent shadows.
From "Snow Falling on Cedars: A Novel" by David Guterson
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
