silence

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“
A chill falls upon the table, until the silence is broken by M. de Gaulle saying softly to his wife, "My dear, I don't think the English pronounce the word quite like that.

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Definitions (26)

Toggle American Heritage definitions American Heritage Dictionary (6)

  1. noun The condition or quality of being or keeping still and silent.
  2. noun The absence of sound; stillness.
  3. noun A period of time without speech or noise.
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Toggle Century definitions Century Dictionary (11)

Toggle GNU Webster definitions GNU Webster's 1913 (3)

Toggle WordNet definitions WordNet (6)

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Examples

  • One main cause of the silence was the isolation of Judea and the character of the Jewish people, who did not delight in merchandise and commerce, but devoted themselves to the cultivation of the soil. —  Josephus
  • The monk made no reply, but his silence was attended with a look by no means expressive of approbation. —  The Confessions of J J Rousseau
  • But God forbid that my silence should be a stumbling-block to any. —  Religion in Earnest
  • A chill falls upon the table, until the silence is broken by M. de Gaulle saying softly to his wife, "My dear, I don't think the English pronounce the word quite like that. —  VERBATIM: The Language Quarterly Vol X No 1
  • It was the better choice. —  Morgawr
 

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Silence has been looked up 370 times, favorited once, listed 61 times, and commented on 8 times.

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Roget's II Roget's II: The New Thesaurus

Allen's Allen's Synonyms and Antonyms

Suggestions Wordniks Suggest

Used in the same context Used in the Same Context

darkness ·  stillness ·  voice ·  feel ·  sound ·  air ·  peace ·  fear ·  confusion ·  presence ·  cry ·  conversation
Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary. Copyright © 2003, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Etymologies (2)

Toggle American Heritage etymologies American Heritage Dictionary (1)

  1. Middle English, from Old French, from Latin silentium, from silēns, silent-, present participle of silēre, to be silent.

Toggle Century etymologies Century Dictionary (1)

  1. from Middle English silence, sylence, from Old French (and F.) silence =Provencal silenci, masculine, silencia, feminine, =Spanish Portuguese silencio =Italian silenzio, from Latin silentium, a being silent, silence, from silen (t-)s, silent: see silent.
 

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/ˈsaɪləns/
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