mutism

IPA/ˈmjuːtɪzəm/
IPA/ˈmjuːtɪzəm/

mutism — noun

1. a disorder in which someone cannot say words aloud, or stays silent, because of

1.nounC2
Definition

a disorder in which someone cannot say words aloud, or stays silent, because of a problem in the body or mind

Example

After the stroke, Kenji's mutism left him answering questions on a tablet.

mutism after a stroke

The clinic helps children with selective mutism speak during short games.

selective mutism in children

Common collocations
  • selective mutism
  • childhood mutism
  • develop mutism
  • mutism after a stroke
  • recover from mutism
Synonyms
  • muteness

    broader and sometimes more literary; less clinical than mutism

  • speechlessness

    usually a short reaction to surprise or emotion, not an ongoing condition

  • aphonia

    a narrower medical term for loss of voice itself

  • silence

    a broader everyday word that can describe a chosen quiet state

Grammar Patterns

mutism after + illness or injury

mutism in children

selective mutism

Usage Note

Common in medical and educational contexts. It often refers to a lasting or repeated loss of speech, including selective mutism in children. Distinguish it from speechlessness, which is usually brief and caused by shock or strong emotion.

Common Mistakes

The child had a mutism after the accident.
The child had mutism after the accident.
Mutism is usually uncountable when naming the condition.
I was in mutism when I heard the news.
I was speechless when I heard the news.
Mutism usually refers to a medical or psychological condition, not a brief emotional reaction.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Mutism is the most clinical of these four words and usually points to a condition that prevents or strongly limits spoken language. Muteness is broader and can sound more literary or descriptive, especially when writers talk about a person's silence rather than a diagnosis. Speechlessness is usually short and emotional: a person may be speechless for a moment after terrible news or a surprise gift. Aphonia is narrower in another way, because it focuses on losing the voice itself, often through illness or damage to the vocal cords. A doctor may diagnose mutism, a novelist may describe muteness, a friend may become speechless, and a singer may suffer aphonia after straining the voice.

mutism ↗muteness ↗speechlessness ↗aphonia

Common collocations

Nouns

  • selective mutism
  • childhood mutism
  • severe mutism

Phrases

  • develop mutism after a stroke
  • recover from mutism

Prepositions

  • mutism after injury
  • mutism in children

Etymology

LatinOld FrenchEnglish

Mutism comes from mute, which reached English through Old French from Latin mutus, meaning silent or unable to speak. The ending -ism turns that base into the name of a condition or state, so mutism literally means the condition of being mute.

First known use

1824

1824, in the meaning defined above