Skip to content

silence

silence

noun see-LAHNS Less Common

Also means

quiet

Usage Note

Silence is used both as a state ('il y a du silence') and as a command ('silence!' meaning 'quiet!'). The related adjective is silencieux, meaning silent or quiet. The phrase en silence means 'in silence' and is very common in literary and everyday contexts.

Examples

"Le silence était total dans la salle."

Natural Translation

The silence was total in the room.

Free starter pack

Building your French vocabulary?

Get the 100 most common French words as a free PDF — one email, no spam.

Explore French by topic