hush up

IPA/hˈʌʃ ˈʌp/
IPA/hˈʌʃ ˈʌp/

hush up — phrasal verb

  • hush upbase form
  • hushes up3rd person singular
  • hushing up-ing form
  • hushed uppast simple

1. to stop news of something bad or embarrassing from reaching the public, usually

1.phrasal verbtransitiveB2
Definition

to stop news of something bad or embarrassing from reaching the public, usually by keeping the facts quiet on purpose

Example

The factory tried to hush up the chemical leak for nearly two years.

hush up + noun phrase for hiding a scandal

Élise believed the school had hushed up the bullying to protect its name.

Common collocations
  • hush up a scandal
  • hush up the affair
  • hush up an accident
  • hush up the truth
Synonyms
  • cover up

    very close in meaning; stresses actively hiding wrongdoing from view

  • suppress

    more formal; can apply to news, reports, or feelings, not only secrets

  • conceal

    formal; focuses on the hiding itself rather than stopping public talk

Antonyms
  • expose

    used when someone brings the hidden facts into the open

  • reveal

    neutral; making known something that was kept secret

Grammar Patterns

hush up + noun phrase

be hushed up

Usage Note

Object is almost always something damaging that powerful people want hidden, such as a scandal, an accident, or a crime. Frequently passive, especially when the person doing the hiding is left unnamed.

Common Mistakes

They hushed up him about the deal.
They hushed up the deal.
The object is the secret information, not the person who is told to stay quiet.

Etymology

English

Built from the verb 'hush', meaning to make or become quiet, plus 'up', which here adds the sense of bringing something to a close or shutting it away. From around the 1600s 'hush' was used for silencing people, and 'hush up' grew to mean silencing not just voices but whole stories someone wants buried.