reticence

English

Etymology

From Latin reticentia, from reticēre

Noun

reticence (uncountable)

1. tight-lippedness, discretion, avoidance of saying too much
2. a silent and reserved nature

Quotations

• 1897: You must not be angry with him, Art, because his very reticence means that all his brains are working for her good. — Dracula, Bram Stoker

Synonyms

• reserve, secrecy, taciturnity
• bashfulness, demureness, diffidence, quietness, reservation, shyness, timidity

Antonyms

• openness, talkativeness
• loquaciousness, ostentation

Translations

the avoidance of saying too much

• German: Reserviertheit (de) f, Schweigsamkeit (de) f
• Italian: reticenza (it)
• Russian: молчаливость (ru) f (molčalivostʹ), немногословность (ru) f (nemnogoslovnostʹ)

• Serbo-Croatian: šutljivost (sh) f, ćutljivost (sh) f
• Turkish: susma (tr)

a silent nature

• German: Zurückhaltung (de) f
• Maori: ahaaha (mi)
• Russian: сдержанность f

• Serbo-Croatian: povučenost (sh) f
• Turkish: suskunluk (tr)

Related terms

• reticent, reticently