†to hold one's mouth: to remain silent; to restrain one's speech (obsolete). to shut (also close) one's mouth: to refrain from speaking. to keep o…

To keep back, repress, desist or refrain from (words, tears); to keep (one's tongue) still. Obsolete.

transitive. To confine within; to hold in check; to restrain; not to utter or give vent to; spec. to confine in school after hours.

To stop the passage of (the breath); to suppress, prevent the emission of, choke in the utterance (the voice, a cry, sob, cough, etc.). Also poetic…

to knit up. To ‘shut up’, take up; to snub. Obsolete. Cf. 1b.

To restrain from speaking; to impose silence on; to suppress the message of. transitive. With the mouth or tongue as object. Chiefly in to muzzle (up)…

To silence or ‘shut up’ in argument or debate; to stop the mouth of a witness, etc. Obsolete.

To restrain from speaking; to impose silence on; to suppress the message of. transitive. With a person or a body of people as object.

In figurative phrases. to tie the hands of: to deprive of freedom of action. to tie the knot: to effect a union between two persons or things; esp.…

transitive. To tie or confine the tongue of; to restrain or debar from speaking; to render speechless.

transitive. To cause or compel (a person) to cease speaking or making noise on a particular occasion; to cause to become silent. Also figurative.

transitive. To deprive of (the use of) the tongue; to render speechless.

To cause (a person, organization, etc.) to stop speaking or communicating; spec. to render (a person) speechless with emotion, shock, etc…

to bite in: to repress (what one has to say); to restrain (one's feelings, etc.). Obs.

transferred and figurative, esp. to deprive of power or freedom of speech; to stop the mouth of.

To put down or put to silence by swearing.

transitive. To subdue or silence with laughter or ridicule.

In various figurative uses. To destroy, crush, suppress, deprive of vitality, prevent the working or spreading of (a movement, activity, measure…

To put down, overcome, silence, by louder or more vehement crying.

transitive. To deprive of words; to make speechless.

transitive. With adv. compl.: To move or drive by clamouring out of, into; to put down by clamour.

To stop with a splint. Obsolete. rare.

transitive. Politics. To cause (a speaker in Parliament) to stop speaking and sit down. Cf. to call down 3 at call, v. phrasal verbs 1. Obsolete.

To interrupt or snub, to cut short, in an abrupt or peevish manner. Also with off.

transitive. Scottish. Of a person: to bungle or fail to complete (a task or undertaking); spec. to come to an involuntary halt during (a speech…

transitive. To close (something) by bringing together the outward covering parts. (a) to shut (one's) mouth: chiefly in pregnant sense, to cease…

transitive. To cause (a person) to stop talking, to reduce to silence. Also to silence (hostile artillery).

to cough down: to ‘put down’ or silence (a speaker) by coughing so as to drown his voice.

To draw one's feet noisily over the floor. Hence †transitive to insult by doing this in a public assembly (obsolete). Also to scrape down: to…

transitive. To drive into a state by howling. to howl down: to reduce to silence by howls of obloquy.

transferred and figurative. In modern use: To reduce (an adversary) to silence. Chiefly colloquial.

To keep (a person) from speaking; to prevent (a person) from being troublesome. North American colloquial.

(in senses 1a–1e dialect) To howl down or reduce to silence by shouts of disapproval. Also figurative.

intransitive. colloquial. To stop talking, be quiet, be less noisy or insistent. Frequently imperative. Also occasionally transitive: to cause (a…