(~er, ~est, ~s, ~ing, ~ed)
Frequency: The word is one of the 1500 most common words in English.
1.
Someone or something that is ~ makes only a small amount of noise.
Tania kept the children reasonably ~ and contented...
A ~ murmur passed through the classroom...
The airlines have invested enormous sums in new, ~er aircraft.
? noisy
ADJ
~ly
‘This is goodbye, isn’t it?’ she said ~ly...
ADV: ADV with v
~ness
...the smoothness and ~ness of the flight.
N-UNCOUNT
2.
If a place is ~, there is very little noise there.
She was received in a small, ~ office...
The street was unnaturally ~.
? noisy
ADJ
~ness
I miss the ~ness of the countryside.
N-UNCOUNT
3.
If a place, situation, or time is ~, there is no excitement, activity, or trouble.
It is very ~ without him...
While he wanted Los Angeles and partying, she wanted a ~ life...
ADJ
~ly
His most prized time, though, will be spent ~ly on his farm.
ADV: ADV with v
~ness
I do very much appreciate the ~ness and privacy here.
N-UNCOUNT
4.
Quiet is silence.
He called for ~ and announced that the next song was in our honor...
N-UNCOUNT
5.
If you are ~, you are not saying anything.
I told them to be ~ and go to sleep...
ADJ: v-link ADJ
~ly
Amy stood ~ly in the doorway watching him.
ADV: ADV with v
6.
If you refer, for example, to someone’s ~ confidence or ~ despair, you mean that they do not say much about the way they are feeling.
He has a ~ confidence in his ability...
ADJ: ADJ n
~ly
Nigel Deering, the publisher, is ~ly confident about the magazine’s chances.
ADV: ADV adj
7.
You describe activities as ~ when they happen in secret or in such a way that people do not notice them.
The Swedes had sought his freedom through ~ diplomacy...
ADJ: ADJ n
~ly
I slipped away ~ly...
The goal of shifting freight from road to rail has been ~ly abandoned...
ADV: usu ADV with v, also ADV adj
8.
A ~ person behaves in a calm way and is not easily made angry or upset.
He’s a nice ~ man.
= placid
ADJ
9.
If someone or something ~s or if you ~ them, they become less noisy, less active, or silent. (mainly AM; in BRIT, usually use ~en )
The wind dropped and the sea ~ed...
Estela started to say something but a gesture from her husband ~ed her at once.
VERB: V, V n
10.
To ~ fears or complaints means to persuade people that there is no good reason for them. (mainly AM; in BRIT, usually use ~en )
Music seemed to ~ her anxiety and loneliness.
VERB: V n
11.
If someone does not go ~ly, they do not leave a particular job or a place without complaining or resisting.
She’s not going to go ~ly.
PHRASE: V inflects
12.
If you keep ~ about something or keep something ~, you do not say anything about it.
I told her to keep ~ about it...
PHRASE: V inflects
13.
If something is done on the ~, it is done secretly or in such a way that people do not notice it.
She’d promised to give him driving lessons, on the ~, when no one could see.
PHRASE: PHR after v