Merriam-Webster Logo
SINCE 1828
Menu
×

An Encyclopædia Britannica Company

shut up

verb

Definition of shut up

  1. transitive verb

  2. :  to cause (a person) to stop talking

  3. intransitive verb

  4. :  to cease writing or speaking

See shut up defined for kids

Explore M-W

alt-59245a1009b19
Trending: Brennan: Concerns of Russian Efforts to 'suborn'
alt-5924736949123
Does This Common Computer Term Actually Reference Shoes?
perfect-storm
Stormy Weather
decimate-video
Is it wrong to use 'decimate' to mean 'destroy'?

Examples of shut up in a sentence

  1. you have no right to tell the rest of us to shut up

  2. nothing I said would shut them up

1814

First Known Use of shut up

1814

shut up Synonyms

Synonyms
belt up [British], clam up, dry up, dummy up, hush, pipe down, quiet (down), hold one's tongue (or hold one's peace)
Antonyms
speak, talk
Related Words
calm (down), cool (down), settle (down); haw, hem
Near Antonyms
pipe up, sound off, speak out, speak up, spout (off), talk up

Learn More about shut up

  1. See words that rhyme with shut up Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for shut up Spanish Central: Translation of shut up Nglish: Translation of shut up for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of shut up for Arabic speakers

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up shut up? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

show hide

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

WORD OF THE DAY

malleable

play

capable of being altered or controlled

Get Word of the Day daily email!

TRENDING NOW

  1. suborn "to induce secretly to do an unlawful thing"

  2. nutjob 'a mentally unbalanced person'

  3. collusion 'Secret cooperation for an illegal or dishonest purpose'

  4. counsel Is it 'council' or 'counsel'?

  5. witch hunt Lookups spiked after Trump used the word in a tweet

SEE ALL

BROWSE DICTIONARY

shut up

WORD GAMES

Take a 3-minute break and test your skills!

  • peter-bruegel-tower-of-babel-painting
  • What language does pajama come from?
How Strong Is Your Vocabulary?

Test your vocabulary with our 10-question quiz!

TAKE THE QUIZ
Bee Cubed

Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.

TAKE THE QUIZ

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Words at Play

alt-5924736949123
Does This Common Computer Term Actually Reference Shoes?

These reboots were made for walking

alt-592453dea3986
Read on to Become Part of the Dictionary 'Illuminati'

Secrets will be revealed.

alt-592333459542f
How 'Namaste' Entered The English Language

"I bow to you"

boulton-and-park
Notes on 'Campy'

Plus: how to use n'importe in a sentence

Ask the Editors

decimate-video
Is it wrong to use 'decimate' to mean 'destroy'?

Language changes

serial-comma
The Serial Comma

Why don't they call it the Merriam-Webster comma?

video-irregardless-grammar-peeve-blend-of-the-synonyms-irrespective-and-regardless
Irregardless

It is in fact a real word (but that doesn't mean you should use it).

video-moose-goose-weird-plurals
Weird Plurals

One goose, two geese. One moose, two... moose. What's up with that?

Word Games

peter-bruegel-tower-of-babel-painting
Where in the World? A Quiz

Do you know what languages these words come from?

Take the quiz
wide-eyed-dog-smelling-rose
What's that Smell?! Quiz

Words for odors and such...

Take the quiz
How Strong Is Your Vocabulary?
How Strong Is Your Vocabulary?

Test your vocabulary with our 10-question quiz!

Take the quiz
Bee Cubed
Bee Cubed

Listen to the words and spell through all three levels.

Play the game
Examples: shut up in a sentence