silent
silent — noun
1. a mode on a phone or similar gadget where the device stops ringing or beeping wh
a mode on a phone or similar gadget where the device stops ringing or beeping when calls or messages arrive, so it does not disturb you.
Felipe put his phone on silent before walking into the job interview.
collocation: put [phone] on silent
Please switch your tablet to silent during the museum tour, everyone.
collocation: switch [device] to silent
Élise missed three calls from the hospital because her phone was on silent all morning.
passive scene: 'was on silent'
Most students leave their phones on silent during the chemistry exam.
collocation: leave [device] on silent
Christopher forgot to take his watch off silent and slept through the alarm.
collocation: take [device] off silent
- put [something] on silent
- switch [something] to silent
- leave [something] on silent
- take [something] off silent
- phone on silent
- silent mode
fuller form; same meaning, slightly more technical.
- mute
often a button label; can also be a verb ('mute the phone').
- do not disturb
a related but stricter setting that also blocks notifications, not only sound.
- ringer on
informal opposite — sound notifications enabled.
Grammar Patterns
on silent
put/switch/leave [device] on silent
Usage Note
Almost always uncountable and almost always after the preposition 'on' (less often 'to' or 'off'). Distinguish from the adjective senses: the noun names a specific device setting, while the adjective describes any quiet state.
Common Mistakes
silent — adjective
1. with no noise at all, so that you can hear nothing.
with no noise at all, so that you can hear nothing.
The library was completely silent except for the ticking of the clock above the door.
predicative use after 'was'
Esme crept across the silent kitchen and reached for the cookie jar on the top shelf.
attributive use before noun
The whole street fell silent when the ambulance siren stopped at the corner.
collocation: fall silent
Christopher's new electric car is almost silent on the motorway.
After midnight the old farmhouse was silent, and even the dogs had stopped barking.
- completely silent
- almost silent
- fall silent
- the room was silent
Grammar Patterns
fall silent
go silent
Usage Note
Often follows 'fall', 'go', or 'stay' to describe a sudden or continued absence of sound. Distinguish from sense 2, which is specifically about people not speaking.
Common Mistakes
2. not saying anything at a moment when you might be expected to speak.
not saying anything at a moment when you might be expected to speak.
Darius stayed silent throughout the meeting and only nodded when his manager asked a question.
collocation: stay silent
Why are you so silent tonight, Élise? Has something upset you at school?
predicative use; direct address
The witness chose to remain silent about what she had seen near the warehouse.
pattern: remain silent about + topic
Quan was silent for a long minute before answering his grandmother's question.
- remain silent
- stay silent
- fall silent
- silent about
- speechless
implies an inability to speak, often from shock
- wordless
more literary; emphasizes the absence of words
- mum
informal; usually in 'keep mum'
Grammar Patterns
be silent about something
remain silent
keep silent
Usage Note
Frequently follows 'remain', 'stay', 'fall', or 'keep'. With 'about + noun', it means refusing or failing to discuss a specific topic. Different from sense 3, which describes a person's general personality rather than one moment.
Common Mistakes
3. describing a person who naturally says little, often coming across as calm, seri
describing a person who naturally says little, often coming across as calm, serious, or quietly confident.
Gabriel is the silent type at parties, but his close friends know he tells brilliant jokes at home.
fixed phrase: the silent type
Our new neighbour is a tall, silent man who waves once each morning and disappears.
attributive use
Yan was a silent boy in primary school, but he became confident on the debate team.
The detective in the novel is a silent figure who solves cases without ever raising her voice.
- a silent type
- the strong silent type
- a silent man
- naturally silent
Grammar Patterns
a silent type
the strong silent type
Usage Note
Refers to a settled trait of personality, not a single moment of not speaking. The fixed phrase 'the strong silent type' often carries a positive or admiring tone in fiction. Distinguish from sense 2 (one specific moment of not speaking).
Common Mistakes
4. choosing not to give information about something, especially when questioned by
choosing not to give information about something, especially when questioned by police or asked publicly.
The suspect was reminded that he had the right to remain silent until his lawyer arrived.
fixed phrase: right to remain silent
Senator Diya stayed silent on the budget vote, even when reporters waited outside her office.
pattern: silent on + topic
Amani has been silent about the missing documents since the audit began last month.
pattern: silent about + topic
The contract requires both companies to be silent on the terms of the settlement.
- remain silent
- silent on the matter
- silent about the issue
- right to silent
- reticent
formal; emphasizes unwillingness to talk about something
- tight-lipped
informal; vivid image of refusing to share details
- non-committal
avoids taking a clear position
- forthcoming
willingly sharing information
- open
freely talking about something
Grammar Patterns
the right to remain silent
be silent on something
Usage Note
Most often used with 'on' or 'about' + a topic, and frequently in legal or political contexts. Distinguish from sense 2 (just not speaking at this moment) — sense 4 implies a deliberate refusal to disclose specific information.
Common Mistakes
5. happening or working in a way that other people do not see or pay attention to.
happening or working in a way that other people do not see or pay attention to.
High blood pressure is sometimes called a silent killer because it causes harm without clear warning signs.
fixed collocation: silent killer
Constanza's silent support for the new project gave the young engineers the courage to keep going.
attributive use; abstract noun
Tenants discovered a silent rent hike that had quietly raised their bills over six months.
attributive use: silent + abstract noun for unnoticed change
Climate change is a silent threat to many small farms across the southern region.
- a silent killer
- a silent majority
- a silent protest
- silent support
Grammar Patterns
a silent + noun (killer/threat/majority/protest)
Usage Note
Almost always attributive (before a noun). Common fixed pairings include 'silent killer', 'silent majority', 'silent protest', and 'silent partner'. Distinguish from sense 1 (literally without sound) — here the focus is on being unnoticed, not on noise level.
Common Mistakes
6. describing a disease or infection that develops in the body without causing symp
describing a disease or infection that develops in the body without causing symptoms a patient can notice.
Doctors warn that a silent heart attack can leave damage that only shows up on a later scan.
domain: medicine; fixed: silent heart attack
Ava was shocked to learn that her thyroid problem had been a silent illness for over five years.
Public health officials worried about silent carriers spreading the virus in crowded train stations.
fixed collocation: silent carrier/spreader
The clinic now screens older patients for silent infections that might affect kidney function.
- a silent heart attack
- a silent stroke
- a silent infection
- silent carrier
- asymptomatic
technical; the medical term for showing no symptoms
- subclinical
highly technical; below the level of clear clinical signs
- hidden
less precise; everyday register
- symptomatic
showing clear signs of disease
Grammar Patterns
a silent + medical noun (infection/heart attack/spreader)
Usage Note
Always attributive in this medical sense. Typical pairings: 'silent heart attack', 'silent stroke', 'silent infection', 'silent carrier', 'silent spreader'. Use sense 5 ('unnoticed') for non-medical contexts; this sense is reserved for clinical or public-health writing.
Common Mistakes
7. felt or accepted between people without anyone actually saying it out loud, ofte
felt or accepted between people without anyone actually saying it out loud, often through a look, a nod, or a shared assumption.
There was a silent agreement among the neighbors not to mention the broken fence again.
silent agreement = unspoken understanding
Faisal gave his daughter a silent nod of approval as she stepped onto the stage.
silent + noun of communication (nod, approval)
The two old friends shared a silent understanding that some questions were better left alone.
silent understanding between people
Her crossed arms and tight lips were a silent rebuke that Dario felt across the room.
silent rebuke conveyed by body language
- silent agreement
- silent approval
- silent understanding
- silent rebuke
- silent message
Grammar Patterns
silent + abstract noun (agreement, approval, rebuke)
Usage Note
Distinguish from sense 2 (without talking): this sense modifies an abstract noun (agreement, approval, message), not a person. The communication still happens — just not through speech.
Common Mistakes
8. describes a letter that appears in the spelling of a word but is not actually sa
describes a letter that appears in the spelling of a word but is not actually said when you read the word aloud — like the k in knee.
The 'b' in 'lamb' is silent, which often confuses children learning to spell.
the [letter] in [word] is silent
Zuri asked her teacher why the 'k' in 'knife' is silent.
silent + specific letter in a word
English has many silent letters, such as the 'h' in 'hour' and the 'p' in 'psychology'.
silent letters as a class
Many French words end with a silent consonant that English speakers often try to pronounce.
silent consonant — language-comparison context
- silent letter
- silent consonant
- silent k / b / h / p
- silent e
- unpronounced
more technical; used in linguistics descriptions
- mute
older term, sometimes seen in older grammar books (the mute e)
Grammar Patterns
silent + letter / consonant / vowel
Usage Note
Almost always attributive (silent letter, silent k). You don't say 'the letter is silent' as often as 'the silent letter' — though the predicative form does occur in language teaching ('the b is silent').
Common Mistakes
9. describes the early films from roughly the 1890s to the late 1920s, which had pi
describes the early films from roughly the 1890s to the late 1920s, which had pictures and music but no recorded speech, so the actors' words were shown on text cards instead.
Charlie Chaplin became famous during the silent film era of the 1920s.
silent film era — historical period
Aoi watched a silent movie at the festival and was surprised by how expressive the acting was.
silent movie + viewer reaction
Many silent films were lost forever because the old reels were stored in poor conditions.
plural: silent films as historical objects
A live pianist would often play music in cinemas to accompany silent movies.
silent movies + accompanying music
- silent film
- silent movie
- silent era
- silent cinema
- silent comedian
- silent star
- soundless
rarely used for films; describes any media without audio
Grammar Patterns
silent + film / movie / era / cinema
Usage Note
Used attributively before nouns like film, movie, cinema, era, comedian, star. Refers specifically to a historical genre — modern films released without dialogue are usually called 'dialogue-free' or 'wordless' instead.
Common Mistakes
the silent treatment
idiomthe act of refusing to speak to someone you are angry with, in order to show your displeasure.
Lotte gave her brother the silent treatment for two whole days after he broke her bicycle.
Receiving the silent treatment from a manager can make junior staff feel anxious about their work.
silent as the grave
idiomcompletely quiet or completely unwilling to share a secret.
The empty courtroom was silent as the grave when the judge walked in to read the verdict.
You can tell Esme anything; she is silent as the grave about other people's secrets.
Word family
Synonym discussion
Sense: adjective/1
All five describe an absence of sound, but they differ in scope and feel. 'Silent' is the strongest: it suggests no audible sound at all, and it also stretches into other meanings (a silent person, a silent letter, a silent film). 'Quiet' is the everyday choice and tolerates low background sound — a quiet street still has distant traffic. 'Soundless' is more literary and almost always physical, often paired with motion ('soundless footsteps'). 'Hushed' carries an emotional charge: voices are deliberately lowered, as in a hushed church or a hushed conversation. 'Mute' applied to people now feels dated or insensitive; it survives mainly as a verb ('mute the TV') or label ('mute button'). Compare: 'The forest fell silent' (no sound at all) vs 'The forest was quiet' (still some birdsong) vs 'The mourners spoke in hushed voices' (deliberately soft).
Common collocations
Nouns
- silent killer
- silent majority
- silent protest
- silent treatment
- silent partner
- silent letter
- silent film
- silent prayer
- silent agreement
Adverbs
- completely silent
- almost silent
- eerily silent
- strangely silent
- totally silent
Phrases
- fall silent
- remain silent
- stay silent
- keep silent
- go silent
- the right to remain silent
- the strong silent type
Prepositions
- silent on
- silent about
- silent for (a moment)
Etymology
'Silent' came into English in the late 1400s from Latin 'silentem', the present participle of 'silere' meaning 'to be still or quiet'. It entered partly through Anglo-French and Old French 'silent'. The related noun 'silence' arrived earlier (around 1200) from the same Latin root via Old French. Senses such as 'silent letter' (1700s) and 'silent film' (early 1900s) developed later as the word stretched from describing people and rooms to describing writing and media.