Synonyms for speechless
- adjective
Most common
Synonyms by meaning
Adjective
2. Dumbfounded
Other
Definitions
- adj. 1
Not speaking; not knowing what to say; silent, especially due to surprise, amazement, etc.; wordless.
When he walked into his surprise birthday party, he was completely speechless.
Related words
- Word family
- speechlessness
Choose the right word
Dumb, mute, silent and speechless refer to fact or state; taciturn refers to habit and disposition.
J. C. Fernald, English Synonyms and Antonyms (1914)
Example sentences
- silent As he didn't know what to say, he remained silent.
- mute Mute people can communicate using sign language.
- wordless A painting is a wordless poem.
- inarticulate He became inarticulate after just a couple of beers.
- dumbfounded John and Jessica looked at each other, dumbfounded.
- thunderstruck I was thunderstruck by my friend's words.
Popularity over time
| Word | 1850 → 2019 | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| speechless | rising | |
| silent | rising | |
| mute | rising | |
| wordless | rising | |
| inarticulate | steady | |
| dumbfounded | rising |
Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.
By length
- 4 letters
- dumb1, mute1
- 6 letters
- silent2
- 7 letters
- aphasic
- 8 letters
- wordless2, taciturn3
- 10 letters
- astonished3, nonplussed2
- 11 letters
- unspeakable4, dumbfounded3
- 12 letters
- inarticulate5
- 13 letters
- thunderstruck3
The small number after each word is its number of syllables (silent2 = 2 syllables).
In other languages
- Français
- pantois