stillness
Americannoun
-
silence; quiet; hush.
-
the absence of motion.
Etymology
Origin of stillness
before 1000; Middle English stilnesse, Old English stilnes. See still 1, -ness
Explanation
Stillness is a calm, quiet, motionless state. As you look out at the lake, the stillness of the water is a sign that you should take out the canoe rather than the sailboat. When there's stillness, you can hear very few sounds and see very little movement. The stillness of a quiet mountain cabin may be just the escape you need from the busy, noisy city — although you may find that stillness to be a little spooky at night. You can also use this word for a more specific example of motionlessness: "The butterfly's stillness allowed me to get a good look at its beautiful wings."
Vocabulary lists containing stillness
myPerspectives 7.4
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The Suffix -ness, Part 1
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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.
“There was a stillness, a deafening silence. It was the sensation of being a kid in a room where there’s only one light source and you can see the floating particles in the air.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 7, 2026
There won't be much stillness in this place for a while yet.
From BBC ● Aug. 20, 2026
So scientists anchor the world’s coordinates to far-off stillness: quasars, the luminous cores of galaxies billions of light-years away, observed nightly by radio telescopes across multiple continents and cross-checked with lasers bounced off satellites.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026
Her comedic jabs at the American economy and humorous reflections juxtapose somber moments of stillness in the midst of her struggles.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 3, 2026
The windows are grand and tall and also fitted with bomb-resistant glass, kept shut at all times for security reasons, which further adds to the stillness.
From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama
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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.
