hush

hush¹ [hʌʃ] v

[Date: 1500-1600; Origin: husht 'silent, hushed' (15-19 centuries), from husht a word used to tell people to keep quiet]

1.) hush

spoken used to tell people to be quiet or to comfort a child who is crying or upset

▪ Hush, now. Try to get to sleep.

2.) [T] written

to make someone stop shouting, talking, crying etc

▪ Ella asked them to hush their voices.

3.) [i]written

to stop shouting, talking etc

▪ The audience hushed as he stepped onto the stage.

hush up [hush sth<=>up] phr v

to prevent people from knowing about something dishonest or immoral

= ↑cover up

▪ The whole affair was hushed up by the government.

hush ²

hush² n

1.) [singular]

a period of silence, especially when people are expecting something to happen

▪ A sudden hush fell over the crowd.

2.) a bit of hush

BrE spoken used to ask people, especially noisy children, to be quiet

▪ Let's have a bit of hush , please, gentlemen.