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- Dictionarysilence/ˈsʌɪləns/
noun
- 1. complete absence of sound: "sirens pierce the silence of the night" Similar Opposite
verb
- 1. prohibit or prevent from speaking: "she was silenced by the officer's stern look" Similar Opposite
- 2. suppress or prevent the expression of (a gene or genetic material): "many inherited disorders are caused by a mutation that silences a gene"
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a period of time in which there is complete quiet or no speaking: Their conversation was punctuated by uncomfortable silences. C2 [ U or C ] a state of refusing to talk about something or answer questions, or a state of not communicating: My request for help was met with silence (= I received no answer).
1. : to compel or reduce to silence : still. silenced the crowd. 2. : suppress. silence dissent. 3. : to cause to cease hostile firing or criticism.
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.
1. To make silent or bring to silence: silenced the crowd with a gesture. 2. To curtail the expression of; suppress: silencing all criticism; silenced their opponents. 3. Genetics To interfere with the expression of (a gene or gene segment) so that its biological function is suppressed.
Silence is quietness, or a lack of sound. When you silence a noisy movie-goer, you shush her. When there's silence, nothing is heard. Silence is empty, the opposite of a noisy racket. A library is one place where there's supposed to be silence so people can concentrate.
Someone's silence about something is their failure or refusal to speak to other people about it. The district court ruled that Popper's silence in court today should be entered as a plea of not guilty.
[uncountable, singular] a situation in which somebody refuses to talk about something or to answer questions. She broke her public silence in a TV interview. silence (on something) The company's silence on the subject has been taken as an admission of guilt. the right to silence (= the legal right not to say anything when you are arrested)
