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Polite vs Silent - What's the difference?

polite | silent |

As an adjective polite

is well-mannered, civilized.

As a verb polite

is (obsolete|transitive) to polish; to refine; to render polite.

As an acronym silent is

.

polite

English

Adjective

(en-adj)
  • Well-mannered, civilized.
  • * (Alexander Pope)
  • He marries, bows at court, and grows polite .
  • * , chapter=4
  • , title= Mr. Pratt's Patients , passage=I told him about everything I could think of; and what I couldn't think of he did. He asked about six questions during my yarn, but every question had a point to it. At the end he bowed and thanked me once more. As a thanker he was main-truck high; I never see anybody so polite .}}
  • (obsolete) Smooth, polished, burnished.
  • * (Isaac Newton)
  • rays of light falling on a polite surface

    Usage notes

    * The one-word comparative form (politer) and superlative form (politest) exist, but are less common than their two-word counterparts (term) and (term).

    Synonyms

    * See also

    Antonyms

    * impolite * rude

    Derived terms

    * over-polite * politeness * polite society

    Verb

    (polit)
  • (obsolete) To polish; to refine; to render polite.
  • (Ray)

    References

    *

    Anagrams

    * 1000 English basic words ----

    silent

    English

    Alternative forms

    * scilent

    Adjective

    (en-adj)
  • Free from sound or noise; absolutely still; perfectly quiet.
  • * 1604 , , Othello , act 5, scene 1:
  • How silent is this town!
  • * 1825 , , Arthur Murphy, The Works of Samuel Johnson , Talboys and Wheeler, page 52:
  • What was formerly performed by fleets and armies, by invasions, sieges, and battles, has been of late accomplished by more silent methods.
  • * 1906 , William Dean Howells and Sidney Dillon Ripley, Certain Delightful English Towns: With Glimpses of the Pleasant Country Between , Harper & Brothers, page 152:
  • The voice of the auctioneer is slow and low ; after a pause, which seems no silenter than the rest of the transaction, he ceases to repeat the bids, and his fish, in the measure of a bushel or so, have gone for a matter of three shillings.
  • Not speaking; indisposed to talk; speechless; mute; taciturn; not loquacious; not talkative.
  • * Broome
  • Ulysses, adds he, was the most eloquent and most silent of men.
  • * Milton
  • This new-created world, whereof in hell / Fame is not silent .
  • Keeping at rest; inactive; calm; undisturbed.
  • The wind is silent .
    (Parnell)
    (Sir Walter Raleigh)
  • (pronunciation) Not pronounced; having no sound; quiescent.
  • The ''e'' is silent in ''fable''.
  • Having no effect; not operating; inefficient.
  • * Sir Walter Raleigh
  • Cause silent , virtueless, and dead.
  • (technology) Without audio capability.
  • The Magnavox Odyssey was a silent console.
  • Hidden, unseen.
  • a silent''' voter; a '''silent partner
  • Not implying significant modifications which would affect a peptide sequence.
  • Undiagnosed or undetected because of an absence of symptoms.
  • Synonyms

    * See also * dumb, mute, quiet, speechless, still, taciturn

    Derived terms

    * silent alarm * silent auction * silent barter * silent butler * silent disco * silent film * silent key * silent number * silent partner * silent majority * Silent Sam * silent service * silent treatment * silent vote

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • (uncountable) That which is ; a time of silence.
  • :* The silent of the night. Shakespeare
  • A silent movie
  • * {{quote-news, year=2007, date=August 12, author=Woody Allen, title=The Man Who Asked Hard Questions, work=New York Times citation
  • , passage=All kinds, silents and talkies. }}

    Statistics

    *

    Anagrams

    * (l) * (l) * (l) * (l) * (l) ----