# hush

> English word · Verb · IPA /hʌʃ/ · frequency rank #15,629

## Definitions
1. To become quiet.
2. To make quiet.
3. To appease; to allay; to soothe.
4. To clear off soil and other materials overlying the bedrock.

## Etymology
From Middle English huschen (“to hush”) (as past participle husht (“silent; hushed”) and interjection husht (“quiet!”)). Cognate with Low German huschen, hüssen (“to hush; lull”), German huschen (“to shoo; scurry”), Danish hysse (“to hush”), and maybe Albanian hesht.

## Easily confused with
- **hut** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hush-vs-hut)
- **Huw** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hush-vs-huw)
- **huts** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hush-vs-huts)
- **husk** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hush-vs-husk)
- **Hutt** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hush-vs-hutt)
- **Hutu** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hush-vs-hutu)
- **husky** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hush-vs-husky)
- **hutch** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hush-vs-hutch)
- **husks** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hush-vs-husks)
- **hushed** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hush-vs-hushed)
- **Hu** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hu-vs-hush)
- **HH** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hh-vs-hush)
- **his** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/his-vs-hush)
- **has** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/has-vs-hush)
- **huh** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/huh-vs-hush)
- **hug** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hug-vs-hush)
- **hub** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hub-vs-hush)
- **hes** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hes-vs-hush)
- **heh** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/heh-vs-hush)
- **hum** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hum-vs-hush)

## Common misspellings (6)
`hhush`, `hsuh`, `huhs`, `hushh`, `hussh`, `uhsh`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/hush