Definitions

silent treatment

NOUN

ignoring of another

Synonyms

WEAK

blackballing cold shoulder ignore someone ignoring ostracism ostracization sending to Coventry

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

“For a day or two, she’d give us the silent treatment, and then we’d all fall back into the form of a life trying to make ends meet,” he wrote.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 15, 2026

‘He thinks nothing of spending $40K on a new car’: My husband gives me the silent treatment.

From MarketWatch • Oct. 9, 2025

"I was on probation, I didn't know this person. I thought he might make my life hard at work, that he might give me the silent treatment," she said.

From BBC • Dec. 13, 2024

PSG supporters kept protesting at Parc des Princes by giving their team the silent treatment.

From Seattle Times • Apr. 28, 2024

Daisy had put me through the silent treatment several times in my life, and I didn’t like it at all.

From "Summer of the Monkeys" by Wilson Rawls