Meaning & use
muted person
Last updated
Meanings
phrasecountablecomputing
Someone who has been stopped from speaking or writing in an online chat, call, or game by the person hosting it.
Grammar: Countable phrase: you can say 'a muted person' or 'two muted people'; it is not a permanent description of the person.
Patterns
- be a muted person
- mute a person
- a muted person in a chat
After the argument, he became a muted person in the group chat and could not reply.
The moderator made her a muted person for a day because she kept posting links.
In that app, a muted person can still read messages but cannot send any.
phrasecountable
Someone who is unable or unwilling to speak, either because of a physical condition or by choice.
Grammar: Used with 'a' or in the plural 'muted people'; the adjective 'muted' here describes a lasting state.
Patterns
- a muted person
- remain a muted person
- treat someone as a muted person
After the surgery, he was a muted person for several weeks and wrote notes instead of talking.
She sat through the whole meeting like a muted person, answering only with nods.
The character in the novel is a muted person who communicates through letters.
Word forms
| plural | muted people |
|---|---|
| plural | muted persons |
Common combinations
- become a muted person
- He became a muted person in the chat after three warnings.
- a muted person in a group
- Being a muted person in a group means you can still follow the conversation.
- temporarily a muted person
- She was only temporarily a muted person, just for the rest of the call.
- unmute a muted person
- The host can unmute a muted person with one click.
Synonyms and how they differ
- silenced person
- Stronger and more dramatic; it suggests someone was forced to be quiet, while 'muted person' is often just a technical setting.
- mute
- As a noun, 'mute' can mean a person who cannot speak, but it is now often considered offensive; 'muted person' avoids that.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: muted person or mute person?
muted person vs mute person
'Mute person' is an older phrase for someone who cannot speak and is now often seen as offensive; 'muted person' usually means someone whose microphone or chat access was switched off.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'muted person' correctly for an online chat?
Choose one answer.
In a chat, a muted person has their ability to post switched off, so option A fits. Option D describes a quiet personality, which is not what 'muted person' means in this context, and option C is ungrammatical.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “muted person”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.