as in silence
incapacity for or restraint from speaking
the speechlessness of our cat never seemed so frustrating as the time that it was seriously sick
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Recent Examples of speechlessness
Both brothers were intellectually precocious, but Scott could be shy to the point of speechlessness.
—
Eren Orbey, New Yorker, 13 Oct. 2025
Eren Orbey, New Yorker, 13 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for speechlessness
silence
Noun
-
Playing 40 minutes of perhaps unfamiliar material before getting to the hits sounds challenging and, to be sure, some of the more lubricated audience members sat in stunned silence.—
Ross Raihala,
Twin Cities,
8 Feb. 2026
-
There was a second of stunned silence before the room erupted in boos and jeers.—
JJ Holmes,
The Orlando Sentinel,
8 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Speechlessness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/speechlessness. Accessed 14 Feb. 2026.
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