Etymologically
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silent

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈsaɪ.lənt/[1]

Etymology

It is from Latin silēns (“still, calm, quiet”), present participle of silēre “to be quiet or still”.[2][3][4] MWU relates the Latin verb to Gothic anasilan “to subside” and Latin sinere “to let go”.[3] It is related to silence.[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

Not speaking: about 1500 in Etymonline, the late 15th century in the New Oxford, 1565 in the OED.[2][4][5]

Semantic evolution

Free from noise or sound is from the 1580s,[2] and of actions made without speech from 1592.[5] Of writers or books omitting mention of something it is from 1601.[5] Of letters not pronounced it is from about 1600 (1605 in the OED),[2][5] and in the looser sense “of few words” by 1840.[2] Silent as the grave is from 1823.[5] The strong, silent type is attested from 1905.[2] Silent majority was at first a name for the dead, and in the 20th century came to mean people with moderate views who rarely voice them, brought to prominence by Richard Nixon in his 1968 presidential campaign.[6]

Timeline

  • c. 1500 – not speaking.[2]
  • 1580s – free from noise.[2]
  • 1605 – of letters, not pronounced.[5]
  • 1823 – silent as the grave.[5]
  • 1840 – of few words.[2]

Modern meaning

Adjective

  1. Without any sound; quiet.
  2. Not speaking, or not tending to speak much.
  3. Not expressed aloud: silent prayer.
  4. Of a letter, written but not pronounced.
  5. Of a film, having no soundtrack.

Noun

  1. A silent film.

Word family

  • silently
  • silentness
  • oversilent
  • unsilent
  • silent alarm
  • silent auction
  • silent butler
  • silent majority

Usage notes

Silent, reticent, reserved, taciturn and secretive all describe people who say little, and silent often implies a habitual unwillingness to speak or a refusal to speak in a particular situation.[7]

References

  1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  4. ^ a b Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ a b c d e f g Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ Cresswell, Julia (2021), Oxford Dictionary of Word Origins, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  7. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin