silence
Americannoun
-
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.
verb (used with object)
interjection
noun
-
the state or quality of being silent
-
the absence of sound or noise; stillness
-
refusal or failure to speak, communicate, etc, when expected
his silence on the subject of their promotion was alarming
-
a period of time without noise
-
oblivion or obscurity
verb
-
to bring to silence
-
to put a stop to; extinguish
to silence all complaint
Other Word Forms
- oversilence noun
- unsilenced adjective
Etymology
Origin of silence
First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English (noun), from Old French, from Latin silentium, derivative of silēre “to be quiet”; silent
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.
On the drive, she filled the silence with inconsequential chatter, as if nothing had changed.
From Los Angeles Times
I know Napoli have been no great shakes in Europe but they still rarely lose at home and that was a statement win for Liam Rosenior, which should silence some of his doubters.
From BBC
It is the only words that break the silence.
From Barron's
While Khan may be silenced, he's far from the only one under pressure.
From BBC
A minute's silence was observed before kick-off in memory of the seven Greek fans killed in a minibus accident in Romania.
From Barron's
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.
