muted

Everyday

1. Quiet and soft, not loud. tree →
2. (of colours) Soft and not bright. tree →
3. (of feelings or reactions) Not strong; held back. tree →
4. (computing) With the sound turned off, as on a video call or phone. tree →

In the lessons

In everyday and online-lesson life, you are muted when your microphone is off ("you're on mute!"). In art, muted colours are soft greys, browns and pale shades. In news, a muted reaction means people were not very excited. Phrases: on mute, muted colours, muted response.

Examples

• You're muted, so we can't hear you. tree →
• The teacher muted everyone during the video call. tree →
• The room was painted in muted greens and greys. tree →
• The trumpet sounded muted with the cup in it. tree →
• The news got a muted reaction from the crowd. tree →
• I muted the TV during the adverts. tree →

Note

Past form of mute (to turn off sound). Mute as an adjective once described people who could not speak; today that is seen as rude, so say non-speaking instead.