silent as the grave
(Redirected from as silent as the grave)
English edit
Etymology edit
Perhaps connected to the idea of taking a secret to the grave, or the idea that dead men tell no tales.
Pronunciation edit
Audio (AU) (file)
Adjective edit
silent as the grave (not comparable)
- (idiomatic, simile) Saying absolutely nothing (especially about a particular subject).
- 1881–1882, Robert Louis Stevenson, Treasure Island, London, Paris: Cassell & Company, published 14 November 1883, →OCLC:
- “Livesey,” returned the squire, “you are always in the right of it. I’ll be as silent as the grave.”
- 1884 December 10, Mark Twain [pseudonym; Samuel Langhorne Clemens], chapter XL, in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn: (Tom Sawyer’s Comrade) […], London: Chatto & Windus, […], →OCLC:
- “Well, then, if you’re bound to go, I’ll tell you the way to do when you get to the village. Shut the door and blindfold the doctor tight and fast, and make him swear to be silent as the grave, and put a purse full of gold in his hand, […]
Synonyms edit
Translations edit
Note: these are translations of a verb construction, to be as silent as the grave, rather than of the adjective.
to say absolutely nothing
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