soundlessadj.1
/ˈsaʊndlɪs/ Of water, the sea, etc.: That cannot be sounded; unfathomable. Frequently figurative or in figurative context.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > extension in space > measurable spatial extent > vertical extent > extension downwards or depth > [adjective] > very
groundlessc888
bottomlessc1400
profound?a1425
neal1574
soundlessc1595
insoundable1602
gulfy1607
unbottomed1615
depthless1619
unsoundable1629
chin-deep1634
fathomless1638
abysming1644
unfounded1648
abysmal1656
plumbless1665
unfathomablea1676
chasmy1793
fathom-deep1835
plummetlessc1861
chasmal1871
abyssal1903
c1595 Countess of Pembroke Psalme cxlviii. 27 in Coll. Wks. (1998) II. 251 When heau'n hath prais'd, praise earth anew;..Then soundlesse deepes, and what in you Residing low or moues, or rests.
1609 W. Shakespeare Sonnets lxxx. sig. Fv Your shallowest helpe will hold me vp a floate, Whilst he vpon your soundlesse deepe doth ride. View more context for this quotation
1647 R. Herrick Hell in Noble Numbers 41 Hell is no other, but a soundlesse pit.
1731 A. Hill Advice to Poets xv In Wit's cold Shallows, wade..no more, Her soundless Ocean tempts you from the Shore.
1823 Ld. Byron Island iv. iii. 61 The crag's steep, inexorable face, With nought but soundless waters for its base.
a1861 T. Woolner Tolling Bell in My Beautiful Lady xxvi My lost soul sank adown in soundless seas.
1884 W. H. White Mark Rutherford's Deliverance iv When we consider that we live surrounded by the soundless depths in which the stars repose.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1913; most recently modified version published online March 2019).
soundlessadj.2
/ˈsaʊndlɪs/ 1.
a. Having, making, emitting, etc., no sound; devoid of sound; quiet, silent. Frequently in the 19th cent.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > hearing and noise > inaudibility > [adjective] > silent
coyc1330
stone-still1338
quietc1384
softa1393
peacec1400
swownc1400
tongueless1447
clumc1485
mutec1500
whist1513
silent1542
dead1548
husht1557
whisted1557
whust1558
whust1558
whisht1570
huisht1576
quiet (also mum, mute, still, etc.) as a mouse (in a cheese)1584
fordead1593
noiseless1608
whisha1612
dumba1616
soundlessa1616
st1655
silentish1737
defta1763
sleeping1785
untoned1807
mousy1812
soughless1851
deathlike1856
whisperless1863
deathly1865
a1616 W. Shakespeare Julius Caesar (1623) v. i. 37 Your words..rob the Hibla Bees, And leaue them Hony-lesse..and soundlesse too: For you haue stolne their buzzing Antony.
1663 R. Boyle Some Considerations Usefulnesse Exper. Nat. Philos. i. ii. 49 They celebrate his praises, though with a soundless voice.
1797 A. Radcliffe Italian I. vi. 165 She glided forward with soundless step.
1827 B. Disraeli Vivian Grey III. v. xv. 332 Once more the attentive ear listening for the soundless breath.
1855 T. T. Lynch Rivulet xciii. 137 Soundless as chariots on the snow.
1883 Standard 7 Sept. 5/6 The soundless progress of the apparently animated car.
b. In quasi-adverbial use: Soundlessly.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > hearing and noise > inaudibility > [adverb] > silently
stillyc1000
stilla1225
softlyc1330
whistlya1400
silentlya1425
coylyc1475
quietly1488
still1535
huishtly1548
whishtly1548
mutely1587
silentially1627
statuelike1640
tacitly1643
noiselessly1794
soundlessly1837
soundless1844
mouse-like1874
quietlike1909
1844 E. B. Barrett Drama of Exile 522 in Poems I My lips prayed, soundless, to myself.
1879 G. MacDonald Sir Gibbie III. i. 14 The moment the sound of them had ceased, he darted soundless after him.
2. In which no sound is heard; still.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > hearing and noise > inaudibility > [adjective] > silent > of places or times
stillc1275
quieta1382
silent1559
as silent as the grave1613
cosh1803
soundless1816
voiceless1816
1816 W. Wordsworth Sonn. to Liberty ii. xxxiv. 38 A soundless waste, a trackless vacancy!
1818 H. H. Milman Samor iii. 63 Vast Germany..Deserts to silence and the beasts of game Her long and soundless forests.
1881 Macmillan's Mag. 44 191 She lingered in the soundless drawing-room long after the fire had gone out.
3. Of the ear: Hearing no sound. rare.
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > ill health > a disease > disorders of ear > disordered hearing > [adjective] > deaf
deafc825
hearingless1398
deathc1475
as deaf as a door, doorpost, doornail1546
dunch1569
surda1682
nut-deaf1828
stock-deaf1865
soundless1890
stone-eared1895
non-hearing1958
Mutt and Jeff1960
mutt1973
mutton1983
1890 T. De W. Talmage From Manger to Throne 297 The world has never seen but one surgeon who could..reconstruct the drum of a soundless ear.
Derivatives
ˈsoundlessly adv.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > hearing and noise > inaudibility > [adverb] > silently
stillyc1000
stilla1225
softlyc1330
whistlya1400
silentlya1425
coylyc1475
quietly1488
still1535
huishtly1548
whishtly1548
mutely1587
silentially1627
statuelike1640
tacitly1643
noiselessly1794
soundlessly1837
soundless1844
mouse-like1874
quietlike1909
1837 Blackwood's Mag. 41 608 Insinuating its way into the bottom of her pocket, and soundlessly relieving it of the notes and shillings.
1865 A. D. Whitney Gayworthys xxvi Skylie clapped her hands again, soundlessly.
1889 Harper's Mag. Dec. 117/2 Soundlessly you will tread those shadowy pavements.
ˈsoundlessness n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > hearing and noise > inaudibility > [noun] > silence
stillnessc1050
silence?c1225
clum1340
stillhead1340
quiet?c1450
whust1558
husht1566
muteness1590
silency1595
still1608
hushtness1609
whistness1609
silentness1664
noiselessness1834
soundlessness1834
non-speech1863
shush1954
deafening silence1968
ciunas1986
1834 Fraser's Mag. 10 663 Then comes a sort of moonlight dimness, and a dulled soundlessness.
1881 H. James Portrait of Lady III. i. 10 The soundlessness of her step.
1897 S. L. Hinde Fall Congo Arabs 77 The same monotony of colour and of soundlessness was above us as in the depths below.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1913; most recently modified version published online June 2021).
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adj.1c1595
adj.2a1616