From hush. Likely imitative of a nonverbal utterance. Compare Scots whisht (“hush!”).
Meanings
An utterance of shh.
Twenty-five million dollars each?! There were hmms and shhs around the table. 1997, Southwestern American Literature, volume 22, page 121:
And, unlike with a film, or a TV show, or a dreary drinks party, you can’t just leave when the boredom descends like an itchy blanket. You are imprisoned by the etiquette of theatre. You can’t even commit suicide without attracting a chorus of shhes as you splash arterial blood all over the orchestra pit. 2009, Jeremy Clarkson, Driven to Distraction, Penguin Books, →ISBN:
“Shh,” says Jenny’s mother, “shh. / Give a shh and a giddyap with your borscht.” / A knock is heard on Gloria’s door. / “Remember is someone asleep in the house!” / Jenny gives a shh and laps up her borscht. 1946, Helen Wolfert, Nothing Is a Wonderful Thing, Simon and Schuster, page 54:
From hush. Likely imitative of a nonverbal utterance. Compare Scots whisht (“hush!”).
Meanings
(intransitive, transitive) To utter shh.
‘No!’ Matt shhes. 2007, Bonnie Rozanski, Borderline, The Porcupine's Quill, →ISBN, page 72:
Deep breathing in your baby’s ear is just as effective as white noise, if not more. Try to avoid ‘shhing’ your baby as this can become more violent if done frequently and loudly. The other drawback is that shhing involves your stomach muscles and when you shh you become tense; the more you shh the more tense you become. 2015, Chireal Shallow, The Gentle Sleep Solution: The Naturally Nurturing Way to Help Your Baby Sleep, Vermilion, →ISBN, “Deep breathe, don’t ‘shh’”:
“Hey,” the test-taker who’d shhed sat up, glared, saw the exec, shut up, and hunched down over the test. 1992, Analog Science Fiction and Fact, volume 112, page 70, column 1:
“I brought coffee,” Landon says but Aurora shhs him. 2019, Hanleigh Bradley, “Chapter Two: Tallulah”, in The Intimacy Series:
Forms
Spelling
Features
Labels
Source
ssh
alternative
lexicographic
shhing
Tense=Pres, VerbForm=Part
lexicographic
shhs
Number=Sing, Person=3, Tense=Pres
lexicographic
shhh
alternative
lexicographic
shhes
Number=Sing, Person=3, Tense=Pres
lexicographic
sh
alternative
lexicographic
shhed
Tense=Past, VerbForm=Part
lexicographic
shhed
Tense=Past
lexicographic
shh en · NOUN · etymology 2
Meanings
(abbreviation, alt-of, alternative, uncountable) Alternative form of SHH (“sonic hedgehog”); Abbreviation of sonic hedgehog.