quiet (down)

as in to hush
to stop talking the kids quieted down when they realized I was about to ask them if they wanted ice cream

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Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for quiet (down)
Verb
  • The magazine saw itself as literary but not self-serious; if the stereotypical National Geographic story was a walk through the jungle recounted in hushed, awed tones, its Outside equivalent was a little dustier, wilder, and less reverent.
    Rachel Monroe, New Yorker, 18 Apr. 2025
  • In his nearly 30-minute remarks, the 82-year-old often sounded hushed, with several distinct outbursts in defense of Social Security and its recipients.
    Isabella Murray, ABC News, 15 Apr. 2025
Verb
  • Under the plan, the federal government will garnish wages from some of those borrowers, pulling money out of their pockets that may otherwise be spent and in turn drying up some economic activity, the experts said.
    Max Zahn, ABC News, 22 Apr. 2025
  • Profits drying up China once served as a haven for global automakers to lower costs and generate enough capital to fund costly innovation projects in the U.S.
    Jackie Charniga, USA Today, 17 Apr. 2025
Verb
  • While Lydia wallows in the residual pain, Paul has clammed up.
    Judy Berman, TIME, 12 Dec. 2024
  • While Lydia wallows in the residual pain, Paul has clammed up.
    Judy Berman, TIME, 12 Dec. 2024
Verb
  • The love that once dared not speak its name now can’t shut up.
    Howie Carr, Boston Herald, 22 Mar. 2025
  • It is put up or shut up time for the UCLA men’s basketball team.
    Jim Alexander, Orange County Register, 19 Mar. 2025
Verb
  • Yes and became yes and no, much like a musical conductor tells the strings and woodwinds to play louder and the brass to pipe down.
    Michael Alcée, Hartford Courant, 13 Apr. 2025
  • The freshwater was coming from a sewage-treatment pipe down below.
    Ben McGrath, The New Yorker, 6 Jan. 2025
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.

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Cite this Entry

“Quiet (down).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/quiet%20%28down%29. Accessed 27 Apr. 2025.

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