hush
Americaninterjection
verb (used without object)
verb (used with object)
-
to make silent; silence.
-
to suppress mention of; keep concealed (often followed byup ).
They hushed up the scandal.
-
to calm, quiet, or allay.
to hush someone's fears.
noun
-
silence or quiet, especially after noise.
- Synonyms:
- tranquility, stillness, peace
-
Phonetics. either of the sibilant sounds (sh) and (zh).
adjective
verb
-
to make or become silent; quieten
-
to soothe or be soothed
noun
-
stillness; silence
-
an act of hushing
interjection
verb
-
to run water over the ground to erode (surface soil), revealing the underlying strata and any valuable minerals present
-
to wash (an ore) by removing particles of earth with rushing water
noun
Related Words
See still 1.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of hush
1350–1400; apparently back formation from husht whist 2 ( Middle English huissht ), the -t being taken for past participle suffix
Explanation
To hush is to become quiet. When an audience is eager to hear a speaker, it will hush as soon as she begins to talk. Train passengers will usually hush their conversations when the conductor reminds them that they're in the quiet car, and one of a kindergarten teacher's skills is getting his class to hush. In fact, to quiet another person or group of people is also to hush: "The principal impatiently hushes the students as soon as they start giggling." A peaceful silence is another kind of hush. In Middle English, it was the imitative huisht.
Vocabulary lists containing hush
Selection Vocabulary 3, Unit 3
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Selection Vocabulary 1, Unit 3
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
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.
Gavin Brown and Adam Sharoudi used their connections with senior health service employees Gavin Cox and Alan Hush to obtain lucrative telecoms contracts between 2010 and 2017.
From BBC • Jun. 5, 2025
Sharoudi became friends with Hush, who was telecommunications manager at NHS Lothian and then NHS Scotland video conferencing manager.
From BBC • Jun. 5, 2025
An investigation found the company was given "commercially sensitive information" by former NHS employees Alan Hush and Gavin Cox, who received a combined £88,000 in cash and gifts in return.
From BBC • Apr. 29, 2025
I wore my Hush Puppies for the occasion.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 11, 2024
Our questions come fast but we want the stories more than we want the answers so when my grandmother says, Hush, so I can tell it!
From "Brown Girl Dreaming" by Jacqueline Woodson
Definitions 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.
