# hush up

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/hush-up
Updated: 2026-08-08

## Senses

### 1. to keep a secret

phrasal verb · CEFR C1 · Informal

to hide information or stop people from talking about something bad, like a scandal or a mistake.

For teachers: to suppress information or prevent a potentially scandalous fact from becoming public knowledge. Transitive and often used in contexts involving legal or political cover-ups.

- The company tried to hush up the news about the faulty products before the holiday season.
- The administration attempted to hush up the internal memo, fearing that its release would trigger a public relations disaster right before the election.

Usage: The object can be placed between 'hush' and 'up' or after the full phrase.

### 2. to be quiet

phrasal verb · CEFR B2 · Informal

to stop talking or making noise.

For teachers: to become silent or to cause someone else to be quiet. Intransitive or transitive depending on whether the subject or object is being silenced.

- The teacher told the students to hush up so the movie could start.
- As the conductor raised his baton, the audience hushed up in anticipation of the opening notes.

Teaching tip: This sense is less common in formal writing than 'be quiet' or 'silence'.

## Examples

- The company tried to hush up the accident.
- The politician's team worked quickly to hush up the story before the election began.
- Despite their attempts to hush up the financial discrepancy, an internal whistleblower eventually leaked the documents to the press.

## Usage notes

- Teaching tip: contrast with 'cover up', which often implies hiding physical evidence, whereas 'hush up' focuses on silencing talk and rumors.

---

From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.