taciturn

• POS: Adjective
• HYPHEN: tac=i=turn

CIDE DICTIONARY

taciturn, a. [L. taciturnus: cf. F. taciturne. See Tacit.].

 Habitually silent; not given to converse; not apt to talk or speak.  [1913 Webster]

Syn. -- Silent; reserved.

OXFORD DICTIONARY

taciturn, adj. reserved in speech; saying little; uncommunicative.

Derivative

taciturnity n. taciturnly adv.

Etymology

F taciturne or L taciturnus (as TACIT)

THESAURUS

taciturn

Spartan, abbreviated, abridged, aposiopestic, brief, brooding, brusque, clipped, close, close-lipped, close-tongued, closemouthed, compact, compendious, compressed, concise, condensed, contracted, crisp, curt, cut, docked, dour, dumb, economical of words, elliptic, epigrammatic, gnomic, indisposed to talk, laconic, mum, mute, pithy, pointed, pruned, quiet, reserved, reticent, sententious, short, short and sweet, shortened, silent, snug, sparing of words, speechless, succinct, summary, synopsized, terse, tight, tight-lipped, to the point, tongue-tied, truncated, uncommunicative, unexpressive, unloquacious, untalkative, word-bound, wordless

ROGET THESAURUS

taciturn

Taciturnity

N taciturnity, silence, muteness, obmutescence, taciturnity, pauciloquy, costiveness, curtness, reserve, reticence, man of few words, silent, mute, mum, silent as a post, silent as a stone, silent as the grave, dumb, unconversable, taciturn, sparing of words, closetongued, costive, inconversable, curt, reserved, reticent, Int, shush!, tush!, silence!, mum!, hush!, chut!, hist!, tut!, chup!, mum's the word, keep your mouth shut!, cave quid dicis quando et cui, volto sciolto i pensieri stretti.

Concealment

N concealment, hiding, occultation, mystification, seal of secrecy, screen, disguise, masquerade, masked battery, hiding place, cryptography, steganography, freemasonry, stealth, stealthiness, sneakiness, obreption, slyness, latitancy, latitation, seclusion, privacy, secrecy, secretness, incognita, reticence, reserve, mental reserve, reservation, arriere pensee, suppression, evasion, white lie, misprision, silence, suppression of truth, underhand dealing, closeness, secretiveness, mystery, latency, snake in the grass, secret, stowaway, concealed, hidden, secret, recondite, mystic, cabalistic, occult, dark, cryptic, cryptical, private, privy, in petto, auricular, clandestine, close, inviolate, tortuous, behind a screen, undercover, under an eclipse, in ambush, in hiding, in disguise, in a cloud, in a fog, in a mist, in a haze, in a dark corner, in the shade, in the dark, clouded, wrapped in clouds, wrapt in clouds, invisible, buried, underground, perdu, secluded, undisclosed &c, untold, covert, untraceable, mysterious, irrevealable, inviolable, confidential, esoteric, not to be spoken of, unmentionable, obreptitious, furtive, stealthy, feline, skulking, surreptitious, underhand, hole and corner, sly, secretive, evasive, reserved, reticent, uncommunicative, buttoned up, close, close as wax, taciturn, secretly, in secret, in private, in one's sleeve, in holes and corners, in the dark, januis clausis, with closed doors, a huis clos, hugger mugger, a la derobee, under the cloak of, under the rose, under the table, sub rosa, en tapinois, in the background, aside, on the sly, with bated breath, sotto voce, in a whisper, without beat of drum, a la sourdine, behind the veil, beyond mortal ken, beyond the grave, beyond the veil, hid from mortal vision, into the eternal secret, into the realms supersensible, into the supreme mystery, in confidence, in strict confidence, in strictest confidence, confidentially, between ourselves, between you and me, between you and me and the bedpost, entre nous, inter nos, under the seal of secrecy, a couvert, underhand, by stealth, like a thief in the night, stealthily, behind the scenes, behind the curtain, behind one's back, behind a screen, incognito, in camera, it must go no further, it will go no further, don't tell a soul, tell it not in Gath, nobody the wiser, alitur vitium vivitque tegendo, let it be tenable in your silence still, background information, deep background information, deep background, background session, backgrounder, not for attribution.