Etymology
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tacit (adj.)

c. 1600, "silent, unspoken," from French tacite and directly from Latin tacitus "that is passed over in silence, done without words, assumed as a matter of course, silent," past participle of tacere "be silent, not speak," from suffixed form of PIE root *tak- "to be silent" (source also of Gothic þahan, Old Norse þegja "to be silent," Old Norse þagna "to grow dumb," Old Saxon thagian, Old High German dagen "to be silent"). The musical instruction tacet is the 3rd person present singular of the Latin verb. Related: Tacitly.

Entries linking to tacit

reticence (n.)

"avoidance of saying too much or speaking too freely," c. 1600, from French réticence (16c.), from Latin reticentia "silence, a keeping silent," from present participle stem of reticere "keep silent," from re-, here perhaps intensive (see re-), + tacere "be silent" (see tacit). "Not in common use until after 1830" [OED]. Related: Reticency.

reticent (adj.)

"disposed to be silent, disinclined to speak freely," 1822, from Latin reticentem (nominative reticens), present participle of reticere "be silent, keep silent," from re-, here perhaps intensive (see re-), + tacere "be silent" (see tacit). Related: Reticently; reticency.

updated on April 16, 2014

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Definitions of tacit from WordNet

tacit (adj.)
implied by or inferred from actions or statements;
a tacit agreement
Synonyms: silent / understood
Etymologies are not definitions. From wordnet.princeton.edu, not affiliated with etymonline.

Dictionary entries near tacit

tachycardia

tachygraphy

tachymeter

tachyon

tachypnea

tacit

taciturn

taciturnity

tack

tack-hammer

tackle

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