silence

American  

[sahy-luhns] / ˈsaɪ ləns /

noun

• silences
  plural

1. absence of any sound or noise; stillness.

2. the state or fact of being silent; muteness.

3. absence or omission of mention, comment, or expressed concern.

   the conspicuous silence of our newspapers on local graft.

4. the state of being forgotten; oblivion.

   in the news again after years of silence.

5. concealment; secrecy.

---

verb (used with object)

• silences,
  present (3rd person singular)
• silenced,
  past participle,  past
• silencing
  present participle

1. to put or bring to silence; still.

   Synonyms:

   gag, muzzle, quell, hush

2. to put (doubts, fears, etc.) to rest; quiet.

3. Military. to still (enemy guns), as by more effective fire.

interjection

1. be silent! “Silence!” the teacher shouted.

silence British  

/ ˈsaɪləns /

noun

1. the state or quality of being silent

2. the absence of sound or noise; stillness

3. refusal or failure to speak, communicate, etc, when expected

   his silence on the subject of their promotion was alarming

4. a period of time without noise

5. oblivion or obscurity

---

verb

1. to bring to silence

2. to put a stop to; extinguish

   to silence all complaint

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• oversilence
  noun
• unsilenced
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• silences
  plural

Participles

• silencing
  present
• silenced
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• silence
  simple
• silences
  simple
• have silenced
  perfect
• has silenced
  perfect
• am silencing
  progressive
• are silencing
  progressive
• is silencing
  progressive
• have been silencing
  perfect progressive
• has been silencing
  perfect progressive

Past

• silenced
  simple
• had silenced
  perfect
• was silencing
  progressive
• were silencing
  progressive
• had been silencing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will silence
  simple
• will have silenced
  perfect
• will be silencing
  progressive
• will have been silencing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of silence

First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English (noun), from Old French, from Latin silentium, derivative of silēre “to be quiet”; cf. silent

Explanation

Silence is quietness, or a lack of sound. When you silence a noisy movie-goer, you shush her. When there's silence, nothing is heard. Silence is empty, the opposite of a noisy racket. A library is one place where there's supposed to be silence so people can concentrate. To silence someone is to hush him up or tell him to be quiet. Silence also has a more disturbing meaning: if someone threatens you to keep you from saying something, she's trying to silence you. Censorship silences free speech.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

silence silences silenced silencing

After years of silence on the largest cheating scheme English soccer has ever seen, the Premier League didn’t mince words on Tuesday.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 30, 2026

As the verdict was read out, there was silence from family members and supporters in court who wore yellow t-shirts and badges, the colour of their campaign, AFP reported.

From BBC ● Sep. 28, 2026

But the household was emotionally chilly, the distant, close-mouthed parents preferring silence to discussions about what and how they had escaped.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 27, 2026

Note the awkward silence after he gives his team the proposed name.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 25, 2026

I let that request hang in the air, and I know that my silence becomes a kind of answer in itself.

From "The Brightwood Code" by Monica Hesse

As children, we sense the edges of these silences without fully grasping them.

From Slate ● Sep. 11, 2026

His and Lissie's wedding pictures adorned the front pages, police forces and football clubs held minutes' silences and blue ribbons were displayed in his hometown of Wallingford.

From BBC ● Aug. 8, 2026

The company recently began clinical trials of a treatment that silences the genetic instructions for the Alzheimer’s tau protein.

From Barron's ● Jun. 3, 2026

The mixture of two pianos and harmonium creates a timbre that somehow manages to seem both eerie and comfortable, and the silences that surround the sounds are as important as the sounds themselves.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 15, 2026

Her silences left him feeling helpless and eager to win back her attention.

From "Half of a Yellow Sun" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

“Seeing my identity changed and being left out of the picture made me feel, in a way, silenced and erased.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 29, 2026

Some commenters rushed to Ware’s defense, airing their own frustrations and experiences with people who violate an unwritten but sacrosanct rule among serious filmgoers: Phones need to be silenced and stay off during a movie.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 19, 2026

Expectation, discussion and demands now are huge and cannot be silenced.

From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2026

Notifications would be silenced during school hours, defined as 8:00 am to 3:00 pm on weekdays between August 15 and June 15.

From Barron's ● Aug. 26, 2026

Mrs. Wigginbottom suddenly dropped her ladle into the stew pot with such a crash, it silenced the group.

From "The Detective's Assistant" by Kate Hannigan

Researchers have explored gene silencing approaches using siRNAs, antisense oligonucleotides, and CRISPR.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 10, 2026

The Fed’s blackout period begins Sept. 5, silencing policymakers until the day after the meeting ends.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 31, 2026

The silencing of the press and scapegoating of desperate sailors does not hide Hegseth’s mess.

From Salon ● Aug. 29, 2026

"Calling it swinging implies consent, and therefore puts the blame at the feet of the women, and that makes it silencing for those women."

From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026

“Companera Grau has a point,” Celia begins, silencing a heckler, a cousin of Rogelio’s, with a harsh look.

From "Dreaming in Cuban" by Cristina García

Related Words

• cut off
• gag
• muffle
• mute
• muzzle
• quash
• quell
• squelch
• stifle
• subdue
• suppress