Word of the Day ·

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squelch

US, UK/ˈskwɛlt͡ʃ/

verb

What it means

  1. UStransitiveTo halt, stop, eliminate, stamp out, or put down, often suddenly or by force.

    Even the king's announcement could not squelch the rumors.

    4 more examples

    Oh 'twas your luck and mine to be squelched.

    c. 1615–1616, Thomas Middleton, John Fletcher, “The Nice Valour, or, The Passionate Mad-man”, in Comedies and Tragedies […], London: […] Humphrey Robinson, […], and for Humphrey Moseley […], published 1647, →OCLC, Act V, scene i

    If you deceive us you will be squelched.

    1858–1865, Thomas Carlyle, History of Friedrich II. of Prussia, Called Frederick the Great, volume (please specify |volume=I to VI), London: Chapman and Hall, […], →OCLC

    The party’s dominant right wing squelched not only Sherman’s hopes for an early convention, but may have also put the MLA out of contention for the leadership.

    1982 December 11, Frances Russell, “Economic performance buoys Pawley’s position”, in The Vancouver Sun (The Weekend Sun), Vancouver, BC, page A6

    We believe that Facebook is using privacy as a pretext to squelch research that it considers inconvenient.

    2021 August 10, Laura Edelson, Damon McCoy, “We Research Misinformation on Facebook. It Just Disabled Our Accounts.”, in The New York Times, →ISSN

    Synonyms: quash

  2. transitivebroadcastingTo suppress the unwanted hiss or static between received transmissions by adjusting a threshold level for signal strength.
  3. UKintransitiveTo make a sucking, splashing noise as when walking on muddy ground.

    The mud squelched underfoot; it had been raining all night.

    1 more example

    [After they both fell into the lake.] Reaching the mainland some moments later and squelching back to the house, accompanied by Bobbie, like a couple of Napoleons squelching back from Moscow, [...]

    1960, P[elham] G[renville] Wodehouse, chapter XVI, in Jeeves in the Offing, London: Herbert Jenkins, →OCLC

In a sentence

Even the king's announcement could not squelch the rumors.

Where it comes from

Unknown. Perhaps a blend of squash + quell + quench. Compare also English squolsh, English squoosh.

Full entry for squelch →

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