silent

American  

[sahy-luhnt] / ˈsaɪ lənt /

adjective

1. making no sound; quiet; still.

   a silent motor.

   Synonyms:

   soundless

   Antonyms:

   noisy

2. refraining from speech.

3. speechless; mute.

4. not inclined to speak; taciturn; reticent.

   Antonyms:

   talkative

5. characterized by absence of speech or sound.

   a silent prayer.

6. unspoken; tacit.

   a silent assent.

7. omitting mention of something, as in a narrative.

   The records are silent about this crime.

8. inactive or quiescent, as a volcano.

   Synonyms:

   dormant

9. not sounded or pronounced.

   The “b” in “doubt” is a silent letter.

10. Movies. not having spoken dialogue or a soundtrack.

11. Medicine/Medical. producing no symptoms.

    silent gallstones.

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noun

1. Usually silents. silent films.

silent British  

/ ˈsaɪlənt /

adjective

1. characterized by an absence or near absence of noise or sound

   a silent house

2. tending to speak very little or not at all

3. unable to speak

4. failing to speak, communicate, etc, when expected

   the witness chose to remain silent

5. not spoken or expressed

   silent assent

6. not active or in operation

   a silent volcano

7. (of a letter) used in the conventional orthography of a word but no longer pronounced in that word

   the ``k'' in ``know'' is silent

8. denoting a film that has no accompanying soundtrack, esp one made before 1927, when such soundtracks were developed

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noun

1. a silent film

silent Scientific  

/ sī′lənt /

1. Relating to a mutation that changes a nucleotide in a codon without a difference in the amino acid for which it is coded.

2. See more at point mutation

3. Producing no detectable signs or symptoms, as a medical condition such as heart attack.

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Related Words

See still ¹.

Other Word Forms

• oversilent adjective
• oversilently adverb
• oversilentness noun
• silently adverb
• silentness noun
• supersilent adjective
• supersilently adverb
• unsilent adjective
• unsilently adverb

Etymology

Origin of silent

First recorded in 1555–65; from Latin silent-, stem of silēns “being quiet,” present participle of silēre “to be quiet”; akin to Old English sālnes “silence”

Explanation

If something is silent, it is completely quiet. After your noisy houseguests leave, you'll probably enjoy being all alone in your silent house. Sometimes a silent reading period in a third grade class truly is silent — and other times, the sound of soft giggling can be heard. People are silent when they don't speak, and a silent film has no soundtrack. You might exchange a silent message with your best friend without using words, just by raising your eyebrows or shrugging your shoulders. The Latin root of silent is silere, "be quiet or still."

Example Sentences

After the incident, she said, she felt like she had no choice but to remain silent.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 14, 2026

“The Church cannot remain silent when violence is justified in the name of security or when religious language is used to legitimize it,” saying that the church must “defend moral clarity.”

From Salon • Apr. 14, 2026

I stayed silent in that group for days, convinced someone would realize I was an impostor.

From Slate • Apr. 12, 2026

Instead, you should be on guard against the silent, ruthless assassin of wealth: inflation.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 10, 2026

There was a new nurse at Dr. van Veen’s and I spent a miserable, silent half-hour in the waiting room.

From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom

Related Words

• hushed
• mum
• mute
• restrained
• reticent