silence

silence
1 noun
1 NO NOISE (U) complete absence of sound or noise: In the silence he heard a faint clicking noise.
(+ of): Nothing disturbed the silence of the night. | silence falls (on/upon) (=it begins to be completely quiet): After the explosion, an eerie silence fell upon the scene. | break/shatter the silence: The silence was suddenly broken by a loud scream. | absolute/complete/dead silence: the complete silence of the forest at night
2 NO TALKING
a) (C, U) complete quiet because no one is talking, or a period of complete quiet: There was a long silence before anyone answered. | She raised her hand and waited for silence. | “Silence!” thundered the judge. | in silence (=not saying anything): We walked back to the house in silence. | embarrassed/awkward/stunned etc silence: There was a moment's embarrassed silence. | stony silence (=when someone has said something very shocking or unreasonable): Their suggestion was met with a stony silence.
b) (U) failure or refusal to discuss something or answer questions about something
 (+ on): The government's silence on such an important issue seems very strange. | take sb's silence for/as (=think that someone's silence has a particular meaning): She took his silence as an agreement.
3 NO COMMUNICATION (C, U) failure to write a letter to someone, telephone them etc: After two years of silence he suddenly got in touch with us again.
4 reduce sb to silence to speak to someone so angrily, rudely etc that they are too shocked or upset to reply: This stinging criticism reduced me to silence for the rest of the meeting.
5 a one-minute silence/two-minute silence etc a period of time in which everyone stops talking as a sign of honour and respect towards someone who has died
2 verb (T)
1 to make someone stop talking, or stop something making a noise: “Just a minute,” she snapped, silencing him with a look of hatred.
2 to make someone stop expressing opposition or criticisms: Opponents of the regime were silenced by threats of violence. | a brilliant new book that silenced her critics

Longman dictionary of contemporary English. 2004.

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Synonyms:
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Look at other dictionaries:

  • SILENCE — Il semble impossible de parler de ce qui est absence ou abolition de toute parole. Le silence se présente comme le point zéro à partir duquel s’inaugure tout langage, sans qu’on y puisse faire retour. Pour reprendre une terminologie empruntée à… …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • Silence — is a relative or total lack of audible sound you can not hear a thing it is quiet. Silence in Social Interaction: Functions, Meanings, and Interpretations Silence in social interaction is the absence of speech. Silence in this arena can be… …   Wikipedia

  • silence — SILENCE. s. m. Privation, cessation de bruit. Grand silence. profond silence. le silence de la nuit. le silence des bois. faites silence. faites faire silence. troubler le silence. Il se dit proprement de l homme lorsqu il s abstient de parler.… …   Dictionnaire de l'Académie française

  • Silence — • All writers on the spiritual life uniformly recommend, nay, command under penalty of total failure, the practice of silence Catholic Encyclopedia. Kevin Knight. 2006. Silence     Silence …   Catholic encyclopedia

  • Silence — Студийный альбом …   Википедия

  • silence — Silence, Silentium. Fort grand silence, Silentium acre et intentum. Il y eut quelque temps silence, Silentium aliquandiu tenuit. Faire silence, Attacere, Silentium dare, Conticere, Fauere linguis, Ore fauere. Se taire et faire silence par commun… …   Thresor de la langue françoyse

  • Silence — Si lence, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Silenced}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Silencing}.] 1. To compel to silence; to cause to be still; to still; to hush. [1913 Webster] Silence that dreadful bell; it frights the isle. Shak. [1913 Webster] 2. To put to rest; to… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Silence — Si lence, n. [F., fr. L. silentium. See {Silent}.] [1913 Webster] 1. 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… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Silence — Álbum de Sonata Arctica Publicación 4 de septiembre de 2001 Grabación Otoño, 2000 Primavera, 2001 Género(s) Pow …   Wikipedia Español

  • silence — si·lence n 1: the state of keeping or being silent; esp: forbearance from speech or comment 2: failure to make something known esp. in violation of a duty to do so acceptance by silence see also estoppel by silence at estoppel …   Law dictionary

  • Silence 4 — es una banda portuguesa formada en 1996, cuyas canciones son mayoritariamente en inglés. (Salvo los temas Sextos Sentidos y Eu nao sei dizer incluidos en su álbum debut Silence Becomes I ). Realizaron dos álbumes con buena recepción por los… …   Wikipedia Español

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