silence
[sahy-luh ns]
- absence of any sound or noise; stillness.
- the state or fact of being silent; muteness.
- absence or omission of mention, comment, or expressed concern: the conspicuous silence of our newspapers on local graft.
- the state of being forgotten; oblivion: in the news again after years of silence.
- concealment; secrecy.
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- to put or bring to silence; still.
- to put (doubts, fears, etc.) to rest; quiet.
- Military. to still (enemy guns), as by more effective fire.
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- be silent! “Silence!” the teacher shouted.
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Origin of silence
Synonyms
See more synonyms for silence on Thesaurus.com6. hush, quell, muzzle, gag.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for silence
Contemporary Examples
If so, he has his silence -- on top of poor judgment -- to blame.
Jay is hard to empathize with and his silence suggests that, yeah, something is up.
“Do not use complaints, courts and lawyers to beat and to silence the enemy,” the NOA activists wrote.
The families announced along with it that they had entered a “phase of silence” surrounding the details of the new deal.
These are men who now have wives and children, and their silence so many years later shows how morally bankrupt they remain.
Historical Examples
The silence remained unbroken, until Paralus asked for music.
PhilotheaLydia Maria Child
Eudora persevered in silence, but her agitation obviously increased.
PhilotheaLydia Maria Child
He was busy almost half an hour, while Uncle Peter smoked in silence.
The SpendersHarry Leon Wilson
Each instinctively touched the other's arm, as a signal for silence.
PhilotheaLydia Maria Child
Robert pointed in silence to the huge rock which lay on the track.
Brave and BoldHoratio Alger
silence
- the state or quality of being silent
- the absence of sound or noise; stillness
- refusal or failure to speak, communicate, etc, when expectedhis silence on the subject of their promotion was alarming
- a period of time without noise
- oblivion or obscurity
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- to bring to silence
- to put a stop to; extinguishto silence all complaint
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Word Origin
C13: via Old French from Latin silēntium, from silēre to be quiet. See silent
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for silence
n.
c.1200, "muteness, state of being silent," from Old French silence "state of being silent; absence of sound," from Latin silentium "a being silent," from silens, present participle of silere "be quiet or still," of unknown origin. Meaning "absence of sound" in English is from late 14c.
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v.
1560s, intransitive, "become still or silent;" 1590s, transitive, "make silent," from silence (n.). Related: Silenced; silencing.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper