silent treatment

as in dismissal
treatment that is deliberately unfriendly ever since our run-in at the party she's been giving me the silent treatment

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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 silent treatment This silent treatment was later clarified to be part of McIlroy’s strategy to eliminate distractions. Scott Fowler, Charlotte Observer, 13 May 2025 This distress often results in either combative behavior (arguing, criticizing) or withdrawal (silent treatment, shutting down). Mark Travers, Forbes.com, 5 Apr. 2025 No guilt-tripping, no last-minute attempts to change your mind, no silent treatment later on. Mark Travers, Forbes, 8 Mar. 2025 No spanking, humiliation, silent treatment, name calling, withholding of love and affection, or nonsensical punishments and consequences. Meghan Leahy, Washington Post, 3 July 2024 See All Example Sentences for silent treatment
Recent Examples of Synonyms for silent treatment
Noun
  • But the main disagreement with them is not in their correct dismissal of deregulation as the cause of the carnage, but in their ongoing support of government intervention, including bailouts.
    John Tamny, Forbes.com, 18 June 2025
  • The union representing most of the agency’s employees sued, winning a preliminary injunction to halt the dismissals.
    Benjamin Wallace-Wells, New Yorker, 16 June 2025
Noun
  • While major studios remain reluctant to take him back, Hammer insists he’s unbothered by the industry’s cold shoulder.
    Scott Roxborough, The Hollywood Reporter, 14 Feb. 2025
  • Listen to this article Who says the NCAA wants to give Denver a cold shoulder?
    Sean Keeler, The Denver Post, 22 Mar. 2025
Noun
  • Losing a job, or facing creative rejection, is a very real type of grief that doesn’t always get depicted as grief.
    Rebecca Alter, Vulture, 27 June 2025
  • Despite the constant rejection, Van-Der-Sluis seems determined to find the love of his life.
    Allison DeGrushe Published, EW.com, 26 June 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Silent treatment.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/silent%20treatment. Accessed 3 Jul. 2025.

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