hush

verb

\ ˈhəsh

hushed; hushing; hushes

Definition of hush

(Entry 1 of 3)

transitive verb

1 : calm, quiet hushed the children as they entered the library

2 : to put at rest : mollify

3 : to keep from public knowledge : suppress hush the story up

intransitive verb

: to become quiet

hush

adjective

Definition of hush (Entry 2 of 3)

1 archaic : silent, still

2 : intended to prevent the dissemination of certain information hush money

hush

noun

Definition of hush (Entry 3 of 3)

: a silence or calm especially following noise : quiet

Synonyms & Antonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about hush

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Examples of hush in a Sentence

Verb

The woman in the seat behind me was trying to hush her baby. The judge hushed the spectators. The spectators hushed as the judge entered the courtroom.

Noun

the storm passed, and a hush fell over the sea a hush fell over the auditorium as the lights went down

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

The auditoriums set up for bridge are hushed, dotted with dozens of card tables with four players at each. — Stephen Wade, Fox News, "Playing bridge at the Asian Games: 'Athletics of the mind'," 22 Aug. 2018 How about a silver gavel to pound on the table at a raucous event—one that could silence a room or just as easily measure out a few jiggers of hooch to the thirsty and hushed? — Kevin Conley, Town & Country, "Old Money Hardware for a Man in a Hurry," 20 Oct. 2015 Despite its opulence, the hotel is far from hushed: Friday and Saturday nights, a DJ in the lobby bar spins something funky, and on Sundays, live music from Park 75 restaurant can be heard throughout the main floor. — Allison Weiss Entrekin, Condé Nast Traveler, "14 Best Hotels in Atlanta," 27 July 2018 Parents, kids, leaders all hush-hushing the abuse and moving the abusers along — quietly, Catholic Church-style — to the next group of victims. — Petula Dvorak, Washington Post, "No, those weren’t the good old days. A rant about ‘homos’ aimed at a kid reminds us why.," 24 May 2018 All Trump scandals seem to lead back to Russia, and apparently the same is true for the saga of Stormy Daniels and her now anything-but-hush money. — Evan Horowitz, BostonGlobe.com, "Here’s how recent revelations may link Michael Cohen to Russia," 9 May 2018 Outside, the paths are softened and hushed with ashy soil; inside, any boards that don’t creak have been daubed with paint, and the Abbotts must pick their way from one to the next, as if on stepping stones. — Dexter Filkins, The New Yorker, "“You Were Never Really Here” and “A Quiet Place”," 30 Mar. 2018 Photo: Tate Restaurant Fabulous Fusion: TATE Tate’s hushed but unstuffy dining room and bar, with bleached wooden paneling and pink upholstered booths, is a refined counterpoint to the raucous cocktail dens further along Hollywood Road. — Eric Rosen, WSJ, "How Young Chefs Are Making Their Marks on Hong Kong’s Fine Food Scene," 10 Dec. 2018 The mood was hushed and discreet, the espresso leather of the seating as by-the-book handsome and bland as the clientele. — Fox, Town & Country, "A Table for Mr. Fox," 21 Nov. 2012

Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective

In February, Trump’s former personal attorney Michael Cohen confirmed that there had been hush money payments to Daniels. — Ben Widdicombe, Town & Country, "Billion Dollar Divorces: What Happens When the Super Wealthy Risk Everything for Love on the Down-Low," 10 Apr. 2019 For the majority of the beginning of their careers, Beyoncé and Jay-Z were pretty hush on their personal relationship. — Natalie Maher, Harper's BAZAAR, "The Best Drinking Songs to Raise a Glass To," 29 Mar. 2019 Daniels’ lawsuit over the hush deal has been delayed, with the judge citing the criminal investigation. — Time, "President Trump Says 'Retainer' to Lawyer Covered Payment to Stormy Daniels," 3 May 2018 Never mind that the hush money payoff took place less than a month before the 2016 election because Daniels was reportedly poised to share her story publicly. — Jack Holmes, Esquire, "Happy Valentine's Day. Let's Pause to Acknowledge How Insane the Stormy Daniels Story Is.," 14 Feb. 2018 Even though Today show star Hoda Kotb and financier Joel Schiffman have been reportedly dating since 2013, Hoda has been relatively hush-hush about their relationship over the years. — Kayla Keegan, Good Housekeeping, "'Today' Show Star Hoda Kotb Revealed So Much to Wendy Williams About Her Boyfriend Joel," 15 Mar. 2019 The couple, who has kept hush-hush about their relationship, has not yet publicly addressed the news. — Erica Gonzales, Harper's BAZAAR, "Jennifer Lawrence Is Engaged to Art Gallerist Cooke Maroney," 5 Feb. 2019 Looks like Nina Dobrev is still keeping her new relationship with her beau, Grant Mellon, hush-hush. — Tamara Fuentes, Seventeen, "Why Nina Dobrev Walked the 2019 Grammys Red Carpet Without Her New BF Grant Mellon," 11 Feb. 2019 Trump has faced heightened legal scrutiny this week after his former longtime lawyer Michael Cohen told a judge that Trump directed him to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars in hush money involving two women, in violation of campaign finance law. — Chris Stirewalt, Fox News, "Fox News Power Rankings: Candidates still count," 24 Aug. 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

Drama and chaos, surely—but the exact plot is still hush-hush. — Christian Allaire, Vogue, "Attention, Big Little Lies Fans: The Second Season Trailer Has Arrived," 14 Apr. 2019 Until this weekend, Taylor Swift had kept her political opinions completely hush-hush. — Isabel Greenberg, Harper's BAZAAR, "Twitter Is Freaking Out About Taylor Swift's Political Instagram Post," 8 Oct. 2018 Even though Today show star Hoda Kotb and financier Joel Schiffman have been reportedly dating since 2013, Hoda has been relatively hush-hush about their relationship over the years. — Kayla Keegan, Good Housekeeping, "'Today' Show Star Hoda Kotb Revealed So Much to Wendy Williams About Her Boyfriend Joel," 15 Mar. 2019 Still, the culture surrounding plastic surgery remains hush-hush. — Elissa Strauss, Glamour, "The Changing Face of Beauty In America," 8 Oct. 2018 Hooters itself is surprisingly hush-hush about the uniform at the center of its business plan. — Vox, "Hooters is closing restaurants. Is its offensive uniform to blame?," 4 Oct. 2018 The primary cast members are all set to return, but the plot remains very hush-hush. — Fox News, "Michelle Dockery shares photo from set of 'Downton Abbey' movie," 12 Sep. 2018 The Fancy Brigade Association was as hush-hush as Golden Crown. — Holly Otterbein, Philly.com, "Mummers scandal? Fancy Brigade winner enlists lawyer as misconduct claims fly," 30 Jan. 2018 Looks like Nina Dobrev is still keeping her new relationship with her beau, Grant Mellon, hush-hush. — Tamara Fuentes, Seventeen, "Why Nina Dobrev Walked the 2019 Grammys Red Carpet Without Her New BF Grant Mellon," 11 Feb. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'hush.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.