silencing

verb

present participle of silence
1
as in shushing
to stop the noise or speech of the instructor quickly silenced anyone who tried to interrupt we need to have a repairman come and silence that door alarm

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in suppressing
to put a stop to (something) by the use of force brutally silenced all political dissent in the country

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of silencing AstraZeneca and Ionis will reveal details on why their rival gene-silencing drug, eplontersen, failed a pivotal Phase 3 study. — Meghana Keshavan, STAT, 27 Aug. 2026 Prosecutors caught the elder Spitze helping his son contact four minor victims to try silencing them with gifts or orders to destroy evidence. — Hudson Crozier, The Washington Examiner, 20 Aug. 2026 Response to ‘silencing’ claims As part of the suit, the city filed a motion for a temporary restraining order and temporary injunction. — Kendrick Calfee, Kansas City Star, 15 Aug. 2026 President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has been consolidating power and silencing dissent in recent years. — The Christian Science Monitor, Christian Science Monitor, 11 Aug. 2026 The researchers went further, looking at liver cells in the lab to see if silencing FNIP1 could turn on fat-burning genes. — Jacek Krywko, Scientific American, 5 Aug. 2026 Trust the Brontës to be a squadron of Shtumtroopers, silencing people to bits. — Anthony Lane, New Yorker, 3 Aug. 2026 Liv Morgan secured a clean Women's World Championship defense against Iyo Sky, silencing critics. — Brian Mazique, Forbes.com, 2 Aug. 2026 Like in Dickinson’s poem, anger often feels like the only way to assert oneself in a society that seems hell-bent on silencing women and girls. — Erin Qualey, Vulture, 27 July 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for silencing
  1. shushing
  2. suppressing
  3. quieting
  4. quelling
  5. muting
  6. subduing
  7. hushing
  8. repressing
Verb
  • Trae Young won Madison Square Garden’s undying enmity in the 2021 playoffs for the Atlanta Hawks, punctuating game-breaking shots by shushing the crowd or bowing to the fans and waving goodbye.
    — Leah Asmelash, CNN Money, 9 June 2026
  • Wine country with kids in tow doesn’t have to mean a stressful afternoon of shushing and screen time.
    — Lauren Schuster, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 3 June 2026
Definition of shushing
Verb
  • The party is often lauded for steering the tiny nation toward economic prosperity but has also been criticized for suppressing dissent.
    — John Liu, CNN Money, 9 Sep. 2026
  • These could be damming a river, suppressing natural wildfires, or suppressing beaver damage.
    — Stephen Underwood, Hartford Courant, 7 Sep. 2026
Definition of suppressing
Verb
  • Seattle comforts you with its natural beauty, quieting your mind and heightening your senses.
    — Giovanna Caravetta, Travel + Leisure, 25 Aug. 2026
  • Five minutes later, Messi gave Miami the lead, curling his shot in tight space past three defenders, quieting the sellout crowd at Subaru Park.
    — Michelle Kaufman, Miami Herald, 20 Aug. 2026
Definition of quieting
Verb
  • The break with Callaway was the first sign that Good Good’s attempts at quelling the crisis were not going well after Clark’s statement on social media Wednesday night.
    — Kyle Feldscher, CNN Money, 27 Aug. 2026
  • As Matt Reeves is hard at work in Gotham City, James Gunn is quelling some overeager fans about the timeline of the Batman trilogy.
    — Glenn Garner, Deadline, 6 Aug. 2026
Definition of quelling
Verb
  • Among several solutions such as time limits and muting notifications during certain hours, the changes include giving teens the option to choose to view a non-algorithmic social media feed that isn’t personalized.
    — Sonja Sharp, Los Angeles Times, 26 Aug. 2026
  • During the third act, in a cunning effect, when anyone picks up a phone, the screen’s contents are displayed on a wall as the lights fade, muting the friends onstage.
    — Emily Nussbaum, New Yorker, 9 July 2026
Definition of muting
Verb
  • Beer that was fresh, full of flavor and aroma, and hadn’t traveled hundreds of miles or been pasteurized subduing the bright flavors.
    — Blaine Callahan, Hartford Courant, 7 Sep. 2026
  • The drones rip through the hallways scanning for a threat before disorienting a suspect using flashing lights and subduing them using pepper balls or by ramming into their body, the company says.
    — Cindy Von Quednow, CNN Money, 24 Aug. 2026
Definition of subduing
Verb
  • Nelson remembers hushing her foster children back to sleep that night and calling 911, anxious for an end to those sleepless nights.
    — Kendrick Calfee, Kansas City Star, 2 Sep. 2026
  • If you’re used to traditional decluttering strategies that focus on sorting and purging, house hushing might feel strange.
    — Mary Cornetta, Better Homes & Gardens, 10 July 2026
Definition of hushing
Verb
  • When elites are strong, dictators need to accommodate them, often by repressing outsiders to shield insiders from potential challenges.
    — José Kaire, The Conversation, 17 July 2026
  • Normally, this modifier gene suppresses the creation of a second kind of hemoglobin, typically made only during fetal development; repressing the gene prompts cells to start making the fetal form of hemoglobin again, which acts as a backup.
    — Roxanne Khamsi, The Atlantic, 7 July 2026
Definition of repressing

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silences
silencing
silent
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Cite this Entry

“Silencing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/silencing. Accessed 11 Sep. 2026.

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