tacit

American  

[tas-it] / ˈtæs ɪt /

adjective

1. understood without being openly expressed; implied.

   tacit approval.

   Synonyms:

   implicit, unsaid, unspoken, unexpressed

2. silent; saying nothing.

   a tacit partner.

3. unvoiced or unspoken.

   a tacit prayer.

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tacit British  

/ ˈtæsɪt /

adjective

1. implied or inferred without direct expression; understood

   a tacit agreement

2. created or having effect by operation of law, rather than by being directly expressed

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Other Word Forms

• tacitly adverb
• tacitness noun

Etymology

Origin of tacit

First recorded in 1595–1605; from Latin tacitus “silent,” past participle of tacēre “to be silent” (cognate with Gothic thahan; akin to Old Norse thegja )

Example Sentences

And analysts have said a regional development policy pushed by Kim two years ago is tacit acknowledgement of the major disparity in conditions between the showcase capital Pyongyang and the rest of the country.

From Barron's

The program’s creation was a tacit acknowledgment of how depleted Ukraine’s fighting force had become.

From The Wall Street Journal

The documentary skips over the next 10 years, a tacit admission that everything since Progress has been a footnote.

From BBC

In subsequent years, I watched the Kurdish-led Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria stabilize, grow and make tacit alliance with the West.

From The Wall Street Journal

But even the best film music has often been relegated to “pops” and summertime concerts, with a tacit judgment among symphony orchestras that it should only ever be paired with children and picnic blankets.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• implicit
• implied
• indirect
• unspoken