silence

The condition or quality of being or keeping still and silent.

The absence of sound; stillness.

A period of time without speech or noise.

Refusal or failure to speak out.

To make silent or bring to silence.

To curtail the expression of; suppress.

To interfere with the expression of (a gene or gene segment) so that its biological function is suppressed.

To cause to be or keep silent; put or bring to silence; restrain from speech or noise; stop the noise of: as, to silence a battery or a gun-boat.

To restrain from speech about something; cause or induce to be silent on a particular subject or class of subjects; make silent or speechless, as by restraint of privilege or license, or by unanswerable argument.

Hence To make quiescent; put at rest or into abeyance; stop the activity of: as, to silence one’s conscience.