Definitions for silence
ˈsaɪ lənssi·lence

Princeton's WordNet(4.00 / 3 votes)Rate this definition:

1. silencenoun

   the state of being silent (as when no one is speaking)

   "there was a shocked silence"; "he gestured for silence"

2. silence, quietnoun

   the absence of sound

   "he needed silence in order to sleep"; "the street was quiet"

3. muteness, silencenoun

   a refusal to speak when expected

   "his silence about my contribution was surprising"

4. secrecy, secretiveness, silenceverb

   the trait of keeping things secret

5. hush, quieten, silence, still, shut up, hush upverb

   cause to be quiet or not talk

   "Please silence the children in the church!"

6. silenceverb

   keep from expression, for example by threats or pressure

   "All dissenters were silenced when the dictator assumed power"

Wiktionary(4.00 / 2 votes)Rate this definition:

1. silencenoun

   The lack of any sound.

   When the motor stopped, the silence was almost deafening.

2. silencenoun

   Form of meditative worship practiced by the Society of Friends (Quakers); meeting for worship.

   During silence a message came to me that there was that of God in every person.

3. silencenoun

   The action of refraining from speaking.

   "You have the right to silence," said the police officer.

4. silenceverb

   To make something silent.

   Can you silence the crowd, so we can start the show?

5. silenceverb

   To suppress criticism etc.

6. silenceverb

   To block gene expression.

7. silenceinterjection

   be quiet

8. Etymology: From silence.

Samuel Johnson's Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Silenceinterj.

   An authoritative restraint of speech.

   Sir, have pity; I’ll be his surety. ——
   —— Silence: one word more
   Shall make me chide thee, if not hate thee. William Shakespeare.

2. Silencenoun

   Etymology: silence, French; silentium, Latin.

   1. The state of holding peace.

   Unto me men gave ear, and waited and kept silence at my counsel. Job xxix. 21.

   I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence. 1 Tim. ii. 12.

   First to himself he inward silence broke. John Milton.

   2. Habitual taciturnity; not loquacity.

   I think the best grace of wit will shortly turn into silence,
   And discourse grow commendable in none but parrots. William Shakespeare.

   3. Secrecy.4. Stilness; not noise.

   Here all their rage, and ev’n their murmurs cease,
   And sacred silence reigns, and universal peace. Alexander Pope.

   5. Not mention.

   Thus fame shall be atchiev’d,
   And what most merits fame in silence hid. John Milton.

3. To Silenceverb

   To still; to oblige to hold peace.

   Etymology: from the noun

   We must suggest the people, that to’s pow’r
   He wou’d have made them mules, silenc’ d their pleaders, and
   Dispropertied their freedoms. William Shakespeare.

   The ambassador is silenc’ d. William Shakespeare, Hen. VIII.

   Silence that dreadful bell; it frights the isle
   From her propriety. William Shakespeare, Othello.

   This passed as an oracle, and silenced those that moved the question. Francis Bacon, Hen. VII.

   Thus could not the mouths of worthy martyrs be silenced, who being exposed unto wolves, gave loud expressions of their faith, and were heard as high as heaven. Thomas Browne, Vulgar Err.

   This would silence all further opposition. Edward Hyde.

   Since in dark sorrow I my days did spend,
   I could not silence my complaints. John Denham.

   These dying lovers, and their floating sons,
   Suspend the fight and silence all our guns. Edmund Waller.

   Had they duly considered the extent of infinite knowledge and power, these would have silenced their scruples, and they had adored the amazing mystery. John Rogers, Sermons.

   If it please him altogether to silence me, so that I shall not only speak with difficulty, but wholly be disabled to open my mouth, to any articulate utterance; yet I hope he will give me grace, even in my thoughts, to praise him. William Wake.

   The thund’rer spoke, nor durst the queen reply;
   A reverend horror silenc’ d all the sky. Alexander Pope, Iliad.

Wikipedia(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Silence

   Silence is the absence of ambient audible sound, the emission of sounds of such low intensity that they do not draw attention to themselves, or the state of having ceased to produce sounds; this latter sense can be extended to apply to the cessation or absence of any form of communication, whether through speech or other medium.Sometimes speakers fall silent when they hesitate in searching for a word, or interrupt themselves before correcting themselves. Discourse analysis shows that people use brief silences to mark the boundaries of prosodic units, in turn-taking, or as reactive tokens, for example, as a sign of displeasure, disagreement, embarrassment, desire to think, confusion, and the like. Relatively prolonged intervals of silence can be used in rituals; in some religious disciplines, people maintain silence for protracted periods, or even for the rest of their lives, as an ascetic means of spiritual transformation.

Webster Dictionary(3.00 / 1 vote)Rate this definition:

1. Silencenoun

   the state of being silent; entire absence of sound or noise; absolute stillness

2. Silencenoun

   forbearance from, or absence of, speech; taciturnity; muteness

3. Silencenoun

   secrecy; as, these things were transacted in silence

4. Silencenoun

   the cessation of rage, agitation, or tumilt; calmness; quiest; as, the elements were reduced to silence

5. Silencenoun

   absence of mention; oblivion

6. Silence

   be silent; -- used elliptically for let there be silence, or keep silence

7. Silenceverb

   to compel to silence; to cause to be still; to still; to hush

8. Silenceverb

   to put to rest; to quiet

9. Silenceverb

   to restrain from the exercise of any function, privilege of instruction, or the like, especially from the act of preaching; as, to silence a minister of the gospel

10. Silenceverb

    to cause to cease firing, as by a vigorous cannonade; as, to silence the batteries of an enemy

11. Etymology: [F., fr. L. silentium. See Silent.]

Freebase(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Silence

   Silence is the lack of audible sound or presence of sounds of very low intensity. By analogy, the word silence can also refer to any absence of communication, including in media other than speech. Silence is also used as total communication, in reference to non verbal communication and spiritual connection. Silence also refers to no sounds uttered by anybody in a room or area. Silence is an important factor in many cultural spectacles, as in rituals. In discourse analysis, speakers use brief absences of speech to mark the boundaries of prosodic units. Silence in speech can be hesitation, stutters, self-correction—or deliberate slowing of speech to clarify or aid processing of ideas. These are short silences. Longer pauses in language occur in interactive roles, reactive tokens, or turn-taking. According to cultural norms, silence can be positive or negative. For example, in a Christian Methodist faith organization silence and reflection during the sermons might be appreciated by the congregation, while in a Southern Baptist church, silence might mean disagreement with what is being said, or perhaps disconnectedness from the congregated community.

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Silence

   sī′lens, n. state of being silent: absence of sound or speech: muteness: cessation of agitation: calmness: oblivion.—v.t. to cause to be silent: to put to rest: to stop.—interj. be silent!—adj. Sī′lent, free from noise: not speaking: habitually taciturn: still: not pronounced: of distilled spirit, without flavour or odour.—n. Silen′tiary, one who keeps order in an assembly.—adv. Sī′lently.—n. Sī′lentness=Silence. [L. silēre, to be silent.]

The Roycroft Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. silence

   A trick of the human gullet that conceals weakness or emptiness.

Military Dictionary and Gazetteer(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. silence

   To cause to cease firing by a vigorous cannonade; as, to silence the batteries of an enemy.

Suggested Resources(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. silence

   Song lyrics by silence -- Explore a large variety of song lyrics performed by silence on the Lyrics.com website.

Matched Categories

1. • Condition
   • Sound Property
   • Suppress
   • Uncommunicativeness

British National Corpus

1. Spoken Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'silence' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #1783

2. Nouns Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'silence' in Nouns Frequency: #812

Anagrams for silence »

1. license

2. selenic

How to pronounce silence?

1. Alex

   US English

   David

   US English

   Mark

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Libby

   British

   Mia

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Hayley

   Australian

   Natasha

   Australian

   Veena

   Indian

   Priya

   Indian

   Neerja

   Indian

   Zira

   US English

   Oliver

   British

   Wendy

   British

   Fred

   US English

   Tessa

   South African

How to say silence in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of silence in Chaldean Numerology is: 7

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of silence in Pythagorean Numerology is: 4

Examples of silence in a Sentence

1. Martin Luther King, Jr.:

   In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.

2. Amy Haskins:

   You still stand there silent. And your silence is supporting him in not standing up, you, yourself, served. You didn't pledge an oath to The President. You pledged it to our country, you pledged it to our Constitution. When are you guys going to start standing up and actually be there for us ?

3. Deepak Chopra:

   Silence is the great teacher, and to learn its lessons you must pay attention to it. There is no substitute for the creative inspiration, knowledge, and stability that come from knowing how to contact your core of inner silence. The great Sufi poet Rumi wrote, Only let the moving waters calm down, and the sun and moon will be reflected on the surface of your being.

4. Elijah Cummings:

   This is getting to be very painful, the silence was chilling. I do need to know a yes or no. Have we done things now that put us in a better position than where we were on the day of this event? And I don't want silence. It's not good enough.

5. Fox News:

   They want to silence everyone, what happens when you sendout an email questioning, say, climate change and all of a sudden Gmail says, nah, we’re not deliver your email anymore. What, are you going to tell me that it is a conspiracy theory? I thought wiping Parler off the face of the Earth was a conspiracy too until I lived it.

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