noiselessnessn.
/ˈnɔɪzlᵻsnᵻs/, U.S. /ˈnɔɪzlᵻsnᵻs/ The state or quality of being noiseless.
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 W. G. Simms Guy Rivers II. xxii. 286 But a silent sorrow had made its way into her bosom, gnawing there with the noiselessness and certainty of the imperceptible worm.
1855 J. R. Leifchild Cornwall: Mines & Miners 50 Let us listen in perfect noiselessness for a few moments.
1893 F. F. Moore Gray Eye or So II. 130 The butler..disappeared with the noiselessness of a shadow.
1928 Observer 8 Jan. 21/4 That effortlessness and comparative noiselessness of the engine.
1972 Econ. Jrnl. 82 245 Dr. Mishan analyses to great effect the difference between a law which gives rights of noiselessness to Mr. X..and a law which gives rights of noise-making to the airport.
1991 E. R. Taylor Tomorrow (BNC) 100 She..observed how the noiselessness of the forest was made evident by the occasional snap of a twig.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2003; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1834