quiet

qui|et¹ W2S2 [ˈkwaıət] adj comparative quieter superlative quietest

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1¦(no noise)¦

2¦(not speaking)¦

3 (be) quiet!

4 keep something quiet/keep quiet about something

5¦(no activity/people)¦

6¦(business)¦

7 keep somebody quiet

8 have a quiet word (with somebody)

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[Date: 1300-1400; : Latin; Origin: quietus, from the past participle of quiescere 'to become quiet, rest', from quies; QUIET²]

1.) ¦(NO NOISE)¦

not making much noise, or making no noise at all

▪ We'll have to be quiet so as not to wake the baby.

▪ It's a nice car. The engine's really quiet.

▪ I'll be as quiet as a mouse (=very quiet) .

2.) ¦(NOT SPEAKING)¦

a) not saying much or not saying anything

▪ You're very quiet, Mom - is anything the matter?

▪ I didn't know anything about it so I just kept quiet .

quiet confidence/satisfaction/desperation

(=having a particular feeling but not talking about it)

▪ a woman whose life of quiet desperation threatens to overwhelm her

quiet authority/dignity

(=not saying much but making other people have a particular feeling about you)

▪ Jack's air of quiet authority

b) someone who is quiet does not usually talk very much

▪ a strange, quiet girl

3.) (be) quiet!

spoken used to tell someone to stop talking or making a noise

▪ Tanya, be quiet! I'm on the phone.

▪ Quiet, you lot!

4.) keep sth quiet/keep quiet about sth

to keep information secret

▪ You're getting married? You kept that quiet!

5.) ¦(NO ACTIVITY/PEOPLE)¦

without much activity or without many people

▪ It was a Sunday, about three o'clock, and the streets were quiet.

▪ I'd love to go on holiday somewhere where it's nice and quiet .

▪ I'm going to have a quiet night in (=an evening when you stay at home and relax) .

▪ Anthony met her in the bar, and they found a quiet corner where they could talk.

6.) ¦(BUSINESS)¦

if business is quiet, there are not many customers

= ↑slack

▪ August is a quiet time of year for the retail trade.

7.) keep sb quiet

to stop someone from talking, complaining, or causing trouble

▪ Give the kids some crayons - that will keep them quiet for a while.

8.) have a quiet word (with sb)

especially BrE to talk to someone privately when you want to criticize them or tell them about something serious

▪ Brian's just not keeping up with the workload. Can you have a quiet word?

>quietness n [U]

→↑quietly

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HINT

Do not confuse quiet (=with little noise) and quite (=fairly) even though they have similar spellings.

WORD FOCUS: quiet

voice, sound: low , soft, muffled, hushed, subdued

place: peaceful, calm, sleepy, tranquil

completely quiet: silent, you could hear a pin drop

what you say when you want someone to be quiet: sh, shut up (not polite), be quiet, keep it down (BrE informal)

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quiet ²

quiet² n [U]

[Date: 1300-1400; : Latin; Origin: quies 'rest, quiet']

1.) the state of being quiet, calm, and peaceful

▪ We were enjoying the quiet of the forest.

▪ I've had an awful day - now I just want some peace and quiet .

2.) silence

▪ Can I have some quiet, please?

3.) on the quiet

BrE informal secretly

▪ We found out he'd been doing some freelance work on the quiet.