inaudible

/ɪnˈɑdɪbəl/

/ɪnˈɒdɪbəl/

Inaudible is another way of saying "hushed" or "silent." If you thought the bad words you muttered under your breath were inaudible, perhaps you should've turned off that microphone in front of you!

In Latin, audire means “to hear,” so it makes sense, then, that inaudible means “imperceptible by the ear,” since in- means “not.” You should strive to speak in a near-inaudible whisper if you need to talk to your seatmate at the opera, but in normal, everyday conversation, you won’t get your point across unless you talk at a louder volume. Synonyms for inaudible range from faint and muffled to uncommunicative and voiceless.

Definitions of inaudible

1. adjective

   impossible to hear; imperceptible by the ear
   “an inaudible conversation”

   synonyms: unhearable

   breathed, voiceless

   uttered without voice

   infrasonic

   having frequencies below those of audible sound

   silent

   having a frequency below or above the range of human audibility

   silent, unsounded

   not made to sound

   supersonic, ultrasonic

   of or involving frequencies above those of audible sound

   unheard

   not necessarily inaudible but not heard

   imperceptible, unperceivable

   impossible or difficult to perceive by the mind or senses

   quiet

   free of noise or uproar; or making little if any sound

   antonyms:

   audible

   heard or perceptible by the ear

   clunky

   making a clunking sound

   sonic

   relating to audible sound

   sounding

   making or having a sound as specified; used as a combining form

   loud

   characterized by or producing sound of great volume or intensity

   perceptible

   capable of being perceived by the mind or senses