hush

American  

[huhsh] / hʌʃ /

interjection

1. (used as a command to be silent or quiet.)

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verb (used without object)

1. to become or be silent or quiet.

   They hushed as the judge walked in.

verb (used with object)

1. to make silent; silence.

2. to suppress mention of; keep concealed (often followed byup ).

   They hushed up the scandal.

3. to calm, quiet, or allay.

   to hush someone's fears.

noun

1. silence or quiet, especially after noise.

   Synonyms:

   tranquility, stillness, peace

2. Phonetics. either of the sibilant sounds (sh) and (zh).

adjective

1. Archaic. silent; quiet.

hush ¹ British  

/ hʌʃ /

verb

1. to make or become silent; quieten

2. to soothe or be soothed

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noun

1. stillness; silence

2. an act of hushing

interjection

1. a plea or demand for silence

hush ² British  

/ hʌʃ /

verb

1. to run water over the ground to erode (surface soil), revealing the underlying strata and any valuable minerals present

2. to wash (an ore) by removing particles of earth with rushing water

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noun

1. a gush of water, esp when artificially produced

Related Words

See still ¹.

Other Word Forms

• hushed adjective
• hushedly adverb
• hushful adjective
• hushfully adverb
• unhushing adjective

Etymology

Origin of hush

1350–1400; apparently back formation from husht whist ² ( Middle English huissht ), the -t being taken for past participle suffix

Example Sentences

To the uninitiated, cross-country skiing looks like a graceful, rhythmic activity set against a hushed winter landscape.

From The Wall Street Journal

All that crackling pressure on one athlete, the hushed ooooooohhs from the rafters, all of it.

From The Wall Street Journal

I start bouncing in the booth and squealing until Emma hushes me so she can hear.

From Literature

Like there was a constant “Shhhhhh” hushing us all the time, in every room.

From Literature

"Right now I think we just need something positive," the 38-year-old Black woman and Virginia native told AFP moments later in a hushed voice.

From Barron's

Related Words

• stillness