Mute



GRE 蓝宝 Barron 考研

解释

GRE 红宝书

• adj. 沉默的;v. 减弱声音; n. 弱音器
• ［英］ adj. 沉默的 ( silent)
• ［类］ 反义词: amplify ( 放大)
• ［例］ He touched her hand in mute sympathy.

Webster Collegiate

I. adjective (muter; mutest)

• Etymology: Middle English muet, mut, from Anglo-French, from mu, mute, from Latin mutus, probably from mu, representation of a muttered sound
• Date: 1513
• 1. unable to speak ; lacking the power of speech
• 2. characterized by absence of speech: as
  • a. felt or experienced but not expressed <touched her hand in mute sympathy>
  • b. refusing to plead directly or stand trial <the prisoner stands mute>
• 3. remaining silent, undiscovered, or unrecognized
• 4.
  • a. contributing nothing to the pronunciation of a word <the b in plumb is mute>
  • b. contributing to the pronunciation of a word but not representing the nucleus of a syllable <the e in mate is mute>
• ? mutely adverb
• ? muteness noun

II. noun

• Date: 1530
• 1. stop 9
• 2. a person who cannot or does not speak
• 3. a device attached to or inserted into a musical instrument to soften or alter its tone

III. transitive verb (muted; muting)

• Date: 1883
• 1. to muffle, reduce, or eliminate the sound of
• 2. to tone down ; soften, subdue <mute a color>

IV. intransitive verb (muted; muting)

• Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French *meutir, short for ameutir, alteration of Old French esmeltir, of Germanic origin; akin to Middle Dutch smelten to melt, make fluid, defecate (of birds)
• Date: 15th century
• of a bird to evacuate the cloaca

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