/tas'i terr"ni tee/ , n.
1. the state or quality of being reserved or reticent in conversation.
2. Scots Law. the relinquishing of a legal right through an unduly long delay, as by the silence of the creditor.
[ 1400-50; late ME taciturnitas, equiv. to taciturn ( us ) TACITURN + -itas -ITY ]