Silence

• POS: Noun, Verb (transitive)
• HYPHEN: si=lence

CIDE DICTIONARY

Silence, n. [F., fr. L. silentium. See Silent.].

•  The state of being silent; entire absence of sound or noise; absolute stillness.  [1913 Webster]

  "I saw and heared; for such a numerous host
  Fled not in silence through the frighted deep."  [1913 Webster]
•  Forbearance from, or absence of, speech; taciturnity; muteness.  [1913 Webster]
•  Secrecy; as, these things were transacted in silence.  [1913 Webster]

  "The administration itself keeps a profound silence."  [1913 Webster]
•  The cessation of rage, agitation, or tumilt; calmness; quiest; as, the elements were reduced to silence.  [1913 Webster]
•  Absence of mention; oblivion.  [1913 Webster]

  "And what most merits fame, in silence hid."  [1913 Webster]

Silence, interj. 

 Be silent; -- used elliptically for let there be silence, or keep silence.  Shak.  [1913 Webster]

Silence, v. t. 

•  To compel to silence; to cause to be still; to still; to hush.  [1913 Webster]

  "Silence that dreadful bell; it frights the isle."  [1913 Webster]
•  To put to rest; to quiet.  [1913 Webster]

  "This would silence all further opposition."  [1913 Webster]

  "These would have silenced their scruples."  [1913 Webster]
•  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.  [1913 Webster]

  "The Rev. Thomas Hooker of Chelmsford, in Essex, was silenced for nonconformity."  [1913 Webster]
•  To cause to cease firing, as by a vigorous cannonade; as, to silence the batteries of an enemy.  [1913 Webster]

OXFORD DICTIONARY

Silence, n. & v.
--n.
1 absence of sound.
2 abstinence from speech or noise.
3 the avoidance of mentioning a thing, betraying a secret, etc.
4 oblivion; the state of not being mentioned.
--v.tr. make silent, esp. by coercion or superior argument.

Idiom

in silence without speech or other sound. reduce (or put) to silence refute in argument.

Etymology

ME f. OF f. L silentium (as SILENT)

THESAURUS

Silence

answer, answer conclusively, argue down, asphyxiate, ataraxia, ataraxy, blow to pieces, blow up, blunt, bottle up, brain, brevity, briefness, bring down, brusqueness, burn to death, calm, calmness, censor, choke, choke off, clamp down on, composure, conciseness, confound, confute, contemplation, contradict, controvert, cork, cork up, crack down on, crush, curtains, curtness, cut down, cut to pieces, damp, damp down, dampen, deaden, deal a deathblow, decease, deck, defeat, deflate, demise, demolish, deny, disarm, disintegrate, dismiss, dispose of, dissolution, drop, drown, dumb, dumbfound, dumbness, economy of words, emasculate, enchain, extinguish, fell, finish, floor, frag, gag, give the quietus, gun down, hamstring, handcuff, hobble, hog-tie, hold down, hugger-mugger, hugger-muggery, hush, hush-hush, imperturbability, incinerate, inhibit, jugulate, jump on, keep down, keep under, kill, knock out, laconicalness, laconism, lapidate, lay low, lucid stillness, lull, manacle, marmoreal repose, mitigate, mollify, muffle, mute, muteness, muzzle, nirvana, noiselessness, nonplus, obmutescence, overcome, overmaster, overmatch, overpower, overset, overthrow, overturn, overwhelm, pacify, paralyze, parry, passing, pauciloquy, peace, peacefulness, pistol, placidity, placidness, poleax, pour water on, propitiate, prostrate, put down, put out, put to silence, quash, quell, quench, quiescence, quiescency, quiet, quieten, quietism, quietness, quietude, quietus, rebut, reduce to silence, refute, repose, repress, rest, restfulness, restrain, reticence, riddle, satori, secretiveness, secretness, send flying, serenity, settle, shoot, shoot down, shoot to death, shortness, shotgun, shush, shut down on, shut off, shut up, silken repose, sit down on, sit on, sleep, slumber, smash, smash all opposition, smother, snuff out, soft-pedal, soothe, soundlessness, sparingness of words, speechlessness, squash, squelch, stab to death, stamp out, stanch, stifle, still, stillness, stone, stone to death, strangle, strike dead, strike dumb, stultify, subdue, subvert, suffocate, suppress, surmount, taciturnity, temper, terseness, throttle, trample out, trample underfoot, tranquillity, trip, trip up, truss up, uncommunicativeness, undermine, unloquaciousness, untalkativeness, upset, vaporize, wise passiveness, wordlessness

ROGET THESAURUS

Silence

Aphony

N aphony, aphonia, dumbness, obmutescence, absence of voice, want of voice, dysphony, cacoepy, silence, raucity, harsh voice &c, unmusical voice, falsetto, childish treble mute, dummy, aphonous, dumb, mute, deafmute, deaf and dumb, mum, tongue-tied, breathless, tongueless, voiceless, speechless, wordless, mute as a fish, mute as a stockfish, mute as a mackerel, silent, muzzled, inarticulate, inaudible, croaking, raucous, hoarse, husky, dry, hollow, sepulchral, hoarse as a raven, rough, with bated breath, with the finger on the lips, sotto voce, in a low tone, in a cracked voice, in a broken voice, vox faucibus haesit.

VB keep silence, speak low, speak softly, whisper, silence, render mute, render silent, muzzle, muffle, suppress, smother, gag, strike dumb, dumfounder, drown the voice, put to silence, stop one's mouth, cut one short, stick in the throat.

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.

Success

VB succeed, be successful, gain one's end, gain one's ends, crown with success, gain a point, attain a point, carry a point, secure a point, win a point, win an object, get there, manage to, contrive to, accomplish, do wonders, work wonders, make a go of it, come off well, come off successful, come off with flying colors, make short work of, take by storm, carry by storm, bear away the bell, win one's wings, win one's spurs, win the battle, win the day, carry the day, gain the day, gain the prize, gain the palm, have the best of it, have it all one's own way, have the game in one's owns hands, have the ball at one's feet, have one on the hop, walk over the course, carry all before one, remain in possession of the field, score a success, speed, make progress, win one's way, make one's way, work one's way, find one's way, strive to some purpose, prosper, drive a roaring trade, make profit, reap the fruits, gather the fruits, reap the benefit of, reap the harvest, strike oil, gain a windfall, make one's fortune, get in the harvest, turn to good account, turn to account, triumph, be triumphant, gain a victory, obtain a victory, gain an advantage, chain victory to one's car, nail a coonskin to the wall, surmount a difficulty, overcome a difficulty, get over a difficulty, get over an obstacle, se tirer d'affaire, make head against, stem the torrent, stem the tide, stem the current, weather the storm, weather a point, turn a corner, keep one's head above water, tide over, master, get the better of, have the better of, gain the better of, gain the best of, gain the upper hand, gain the ascendancy, gain the whip hand, gain the start of, distance, surpass, defeat, conquer, vanquish, discomfit, euchre, overcome, overthrow, overpower, overmaster, overmatch, overset, override, overreach, outwit, outdo, outflank, outmaneuver, outgeneral, outvote, take the wind out of one's adversary's sails, beat, beat hollow, rout, lick, drub, floor, worst, put down, put to flight, put to the rout, put hors de combat, put out of court, silence, quell, nonsuit, checkmate, upset, confound, nonplus, stalemate, trump, baffle, circumvent, elude, trip up, trip up the heels of, drive into a corner, drive to the wall, run hard, put one's nose out of joint, settle, do for, break the neck of, break the back of, capsize, sink, shipwreck, drown, swamp, subdue, subjugate, reduce, make the enemy bite the dust, victimize, roll in the dust, trample under foot, put an extinguisher upon, answer, answer the purpose, avail, prevail, take effect, do, turn out well, work well, take, tell, bear fruit, hit it, hit the mark, hit the right nail on the head, nick it, turn up trumps, make a hit, find one's account in.

Impotence

VB be impotent, not have a leg to stand on, vouloir rompre l'anguille au genou, vouloir prendre la lune avec les dents, collapse, faint, swoon, fall into a swoon, drop, go by the board, go by the wayside, go up in smoke, end in smoke, render powerless, deprive of power, disable, disenable, disarm, incapacitate, disqualify, unfit, invalidate, deaden, cramp, tie the hands, double up, prostrate, paralyze, muzzle, cripple, becripple, maim, lame, hamstring, draw the teeth of, throttle, strangle, garrotte, garrote, ratten, silence, sprain, clip the wings of, put hors de combat, spike the guns, take the wind out of one's sails, scotch the snake, put a spoke in one's wheel, break the neck, break the back, unhinge, unfit, put out of gear, unman, unnerve, enervate, emasculate, castrate, geld, alter, neuter, sterilize, fix, shatter, exhaust, weaken.

Quiescence

N quiescence, rest, stillness, quiescence, stagnation, stagnancy, fixity, immobility, catalepsy, indisturbance, quietism, quiet, tranquility, calm, repose, peace, dead calm, anticyclone, statue-like repose, silence, not a breath of air, not a mouse stirring, sleep, pause, lull, stand still, standing still, lock, dead lock, dead stop, dead stand, full stop, fix, embargo, resting place, gite, bivouac, home, pillow, haven, goal, quiescent, still, motionless, moveless, fixed, stationary, immotile, at rest at a stand, at a standstill, at anchor, stock, still, standing still, sedentary, untraveled, stay-at-home, becalmed, stagnant, quiet, unmoved, undisturbed, unruffled, calm, restful, cataleptic, immovable, sleeping, silent, still as a statue, still as a post, still as a mouse, still as death, vegetative, vegetating, at a stand, tout court, at the halt, Int, stop!, stay!, avast!, halt!, hold hard!, whoa!, hold!, sabr karo!, requiescat in pace, Deus nobis haec otia fecit, the noonday quiet holds the hill.

Silence

N silence, stillness, peace, hush, lull, muteness, solemn silence, awful silence, dead silence, deathlike silence, silent, still, stilly, noiseless, soundless, hushed, mute, soft, solemn, awful, deathlike, silent as the grave, inaudible, silently, sub silentio, Int, hush!, silence!, soft!, whist!, tush!, chut!, tut!, pax!, be quiet!, be silent!, be still!, shut up!, chup!, chup rao!, tace!, one might hear a feather drop, one might hear a pin drop, so quiet you could hear a pin drop, grosse Seelen dulden still, le silence est la vertu de ceux qui ne sont pas sa, le silence est le parti le plus sar de celui se d_, silence more musical than any song, tacent satis laudant, better to be silent and thought a fool than to spe.

VB be silent, hold one's tongue, render silent, silence, still, hush, stifle, muffle, stop, muzzle, put to silence.

Confutation

VB confute, refute, disprove, parry, negative, controvert, rebut, confound, disconfirm, redargue, expose, show the fallacy of, defeat, demolish, break, overthrow, overturn scatter to the winds, explode, invalidate, silence, put to silence, reduce to silence, clinch an argument, clinch a question, give one a setdown, stop the mouth, shut up, have, have on the hip, not leave a leg to stand on, cut the ground from under one's feet, be confuted, fail, expose one's weak point, show one's weak point, counter evidence.

Implication

N latency, implication, latency, inexpression, hidden meaning, occult meaning, occultness, mystery, cabala, anagoge, silence, concealment, more than meets the eye, more than meets the ear, Delphic oracle, le dessous des cartes, undercurrent, implication, logical implication, logical consequence, entailment, allusion, insinuation, innuendo, adumbration, something rotten in the state of Denmark, snake in the grass, secret, darkness, invisibility, imperceptibility, latent, lurking, secret, occult, implied, dormant, abeyant, unapparent, unknown, unseen, in the background, invisible, indiscoverable, dark, impenetrable, unspied, unsuspected, unsaid, unwritten, unpublished, unbreathed, untalked of, untold &c, unsung, unexposed, unproclaimed, undisclosed, unexpressed, not expressed, tacit, undeveloped, solved, unexplained, untraced, undiscovered, untracked, unexplored, uninvented, indirect, crooked, inferential, by inference, by implication, implicit, constructive, allusive, covert, muffled, steganographic, understood, underhand, underground, delitescent, concealed, by a side wind, sub silentio, in the background, behind the scenes, behind one's back, on the tip of one's tongue, secretly, between the lines, thereby hangs a tale, tacitum vivit sub pectore vulnus, where there's smoke, there's fire.

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.