hush

English

Etymology

From Middle English huschen (“to hush”) (as past participle husht (“silent; hushed”) and interjection husht (“quiet!”)). Cognate with Low German huschen, hüssen (“to hush; lull”), German huschen (“to shoo; scurry”), Danish hysse (“to hush”), and maybe Albanian hesht.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /hʌʃ/, /hʊʃ/
• Rhymes: -ʌʃ

• Audio (Received Pronunciation):

  (file)

Verb

hush (third-person singular simple present hushes, present participle hushing, simple past and past participle hushed)

1. (intransitive) To become quiet.
2. (transitive) To make quiet.
3. (transitive) To appease; to allay; to soothe.
   • 1682, Thomas Otway, Venice Preserv’d, or, A Plot Discover’d. A Tragedy. […], London: […] Jos[eph] Hindmarsh […], →OCLC, Act I, scene i, page 11:

     VVilt thou then / Huſh my Cares thus, and ſhelter me vvith Love?

   • 1850, [Alfred, Lord Tennyson], In Memoriam, London: Edward Moxon, […], →OCLC, Canto XIX, page 32:

     And hush’d my deepest grief of all.

4. (transitive) To clear off soil and other materials overlying the bedrock.

Derived terms

• hush down
• hush one's mouth
• hush-up

Translations

to become quiet

Afrikaans: sjuut (af) Arabic: صَمَتَ (ṣamata) Egyptian Arabic: يسكت (yeskut) Bikol Central: halo (bcl) Bulgarian: млъквам (bg) (mlǎkvam), смълчавам се (smǎlčavam se) Catalan: callar (ca) Chinese: Mandarin: 安靜／安静 (zh) (ānjìng) Galician: calar (gl), sochar, amuar, cochar German: verstummen (de), still werden Hungarian: elhallgat (hu), elcsendesedik (hu), elcsendesül (hu), elnémul (hu) Japanese: 黙る (ja) (だまる, damaru) Latin: taceo (la) Maori: māī Polish: zamilknąć (pl) pf Romanian: tăcea (ro) Russian: замолка́ть (ru) impf (zamolkátʹ), замо́лкнуть (ru) pf (zamólknutʹ), замолча́ть (ru) pf (zamolčátʹ) Slovak: stíchnuť, zmĺknuť, zamĺknuť, čušať Spanish: callar (es), callarse (es) Turkish: susmak (tr), suskunlaşmak (tr)

to make quiet

Arabic: صَمَّتَ (ṣammata), أَصْمَتَ (ʔaṣmata) Egyptian Arabic: يسكت (yesaket) Bikol Central: halo (bcl) Bulgarian: въдворявам тишина (vǎdvorjavam tišina) Catalan: mutis (ca) Finnish: hyssytellä (fi), vaientaa (fi) Galician: calar (gl), sochar, amuar, cochar German: zum Schweigen bringen Hungarian: lecsendesít (hu), elnémít (hu), elhallgattat (hu), elcsitít (hu) Polish: uciszyć (pl) pf, uciszać (pl) impf Russian: утихоми́ривать (ru) impf (utixomírivatʹ), успока́ивать (ru) impf (uspokáivatʹ) Slovak: utíšiť Spanish: callar (es), acallar (es) Turkish: susturmak (tr)

to soothe

Bulgarian: утешавам (bg) (utešavam) Catalan: apaivagar (ca), assossegar (ca) Galician: acalentar (gl), acamallar, acuchuminar, poupear, trempar, apagullar Hungarian: megnyugtat (hu) Maori: pōpō Spanish: calmar (es), acallar (es)

Noun

hush (uncountable)

1. A silence, especially after some noise
   • 1816, Lord Byron, “Canto III”, in Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage. Canto the Third, London: Printed for John Murray, […], →OCLC, stanza LXXXVI:

     It is the hush of night.

   • 1905, Lord Dunsany [i.e., Edward Plunkett, 18th Baron of Dunsany], The Gods of Pegāna, London: [Charles] Elkin Mathews, […], →OCLC:

     And there fell a hush upon the gods when they saw that Māna rested, and there was silence on Pegāna save for the drumming of Skarl.

2. A mining method using water

Derived terms

• Bayreuth hush
• hushaby
• hush clause
• husher
• hushful
• hush-hire
• hush house
• hush-hush
• hush kit
• hush money
• hush puppy
• hush shop
• hush up
• on the hush

 

Translations

silence

Bulgarian: тишина (bg) f (tišina), мълчание (bg) n (mǎlčanie) Catalan: silenci (ca) m Chinese: Mandarin: 安靜／安静 (zh) (ānjìng) Danish: stilhed (da) c Finnish: hiljaisuus (fi) French: silence (fr) f German: Stille (de) f, Ruhe (de) f Japanese: 静けさ (ja) (しずけさ, shizukesa) Russian: тишина́ (ru) f (tišiná), молча́ние (ru) n (molčánije) Slovak: ticho Spanish: silencio (es) m Turkish: sessizlik (tr)

mining method

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

Japanese: (please verify) 静けさ (ja) (しずけさ, shizukesa)

Anagrams

• Huhs

Jamaican Creole

Etymology

From English hush.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /hʌʃ/
• Hyphenation: hush

Interjection

hush

1. there, there (calm somebody)

   Georgie, mi sorry fi 'ear seh yuh mooma dead. Hush. Doan cry.

   George, I'm sorry your mom died. There, there. Don't cry.

   • 2017, Kelly Daviot, “Hush yah, Shaneke, such is life”, in The Jamaica Gleaner‎ (in English):

     “Hush yah, Shaneke, such is life. […] ”

     There, there, Shaneke. Such is life. […]

Verb

hush

1. be quiet

   Chile, hush yu mouth!

   Child, be quiet!