different between allay vs still

English

Alternative forms

• alay (obsolete)

Etymology

From Middle English alayen, aleyen, aleggen, from Old English ?le??an (“to put, place, lay down, lay aside, throw down, give up, cease from, abandon; put down, allay, suppress, abolish, conquer, destroy, overcome, refute; lay upon, inflict, impose upon; diminish, take away, refuse, lessen, withhold”), from Proto-Germanic *uzlagjan? (“to lay down”), equivalent to a- +? lay. Cognate with German erlegen (“to impose, cause to succumb, kill”), Gothic ???????????????????????????????? (uslagjan, “to lay down”). In Middle English the word was identical to forms of allege and alloy, leading to much overlapping of senses.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /??le?/
• Rhymes: -e?

Verb

allay (third-person singular simple present allays, present participle allaying, simple past and past participle allayed)

1. (transitive) To make quiet or put at rest; to pacify or appease; to quell; to calm.

   Synonyms: appease, assuage, compose, soothe, calm, quiet
2. (transitive) To alleviate; to abate; to mitigate.

   Synonyms: alleviate, abate

3. (intransitive, obsolete) To subside, abate, become peaceful.
   • 1526, William Tyndale, trans. Bible, Mark IV:

     And the wynde alayed, and there folowed a greate calme: and he sayde unto them: why are ye fearfull?
4. (archaic) To mix (metals); to mix with a baser metal; to alloy; to deteriorate.
5. (archaic, by extension) To make worse by the introduction of inferior elements.

Translations

Noun

allay (plural allays)

1. Alleviation; abatement; check.
2. (obsolete) An alloy.

References

• allay in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.

Anagrams

• Layla

Quechua

Noun

allay

1. harvest or digging up of potatoes or tubers

Declension

Verb

allay

1. (transitive) to dig, dig up, dig out, excavate; to harvest tubers

Conjugation

See also

• aymuray
• pallay

English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /st?l/
• Rhymes: -?l

Etymology 1

From Middle English stille (“motionless, stationary”), from Old English stille (“still, quiet, calm; without motion, at rest, not moving from a place, not disturbed; moving little or gently; silent; not loud; secret; unchanging, undisturbed, stable, fixed; not vehement, gentle”), from Proto-West Germanic *still? (“quiet, still”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)telH- (“to be silent; to be still”). Cognate with Scots stil (“still”), Saterland Frisian stil (“motionless, calm, quiet”), West Frisian stil (“quiet, still”), Dutch stil (“quiet, silent, still”), Low German still (“quiet, still”), German still (“still, quiet, tranquil, silent”), Swedish stilla (“quiet, silent, peaceful”), Icelandic stilltur (“set, quiet, calm, still”). Related to stall.

(noun: Falkland Islander): Military slang, short for still a Benny, since the military had been instructed not to refer to the islanders by the derogatory term Benny (which see).

Alternative forms

• stil
• stille, styll, stylle (obsolete)

Adjective

still (comparative stiller or more still, superlative stillest or most still)

1. Not moving; calm.

2. Not effervescing; not sparkling.

3. Uttering no sound; silent.
   • c. 1711, Joseph Addison, How are thy Servants blest, O Lord!

     The sea that roared at thy command, / At thy command was still.

4. (not comparable) Having the same stated quality continuously from a past time
5. Comparatively quiet or silent; soft; gentle; low.
6. (obsolete) Constant; continual.

Synonyms

• (not moving): fixed, stationary, unmoving, static, inert, stagnant; see also Thesaurus:stationary or Thesaurus:immobile
• (not effervescing): flat, uneffervescent; see also Thesaurus:noneffervescent
• (uttering no sound): noiseless, soundless; see also Thesaurus:silent
• (having the same stated quality):
• (comparatively quiet): hushed, tranquil; see also Thesaurus:quiet
• (constant, continual): incessant, ongoing, unremitting; see also Thesaurus:continuous

Derived terms

• still life
• stillness
• unstill

Related terms

• be still my heart
• be still my beating heart
• still waters run deep

Translations

Adverb

still (not comparable)

1. Without motion.

2. (aspect) Up to a time, as in the preceding time.

3. (degree) To an even greater degree. Used to modify comparative adjectives or adverbs.

   ("still" and "taller" can easily swap places here)
4. (conjunctive) Nevertheless.
   • 1817, Thomas Moore, Lalla-Rookh

     As sunshine, broken in the rill, / Though turned astray, is sunshine still.
5. (archaic, poetic) Always; invariably; constantly; continuously.
   • The desire of fame betrays an ambitious man into indecencies that lessen his reputation; he is still afraid lest any of his actions should be thrown away in private.

   • 1661, Robert Boyle, Unsucceeding Experiments

     Chemists would be rich if they could still do in great quantities what they have sometimes done in little.

6. (extensive) Even, yet.

Synonyms

• (without motion): akinetically, motionlessly, stock still, stockishly
• (up to a time): yet
• (to an even greater degree): yet, even
• (nevertheless): nonetheless, though, yet; see also Thesaurus:nevertheless
• (always): consistently, invariably, uniformly; See also Thesaurus:uniformly
• (even, yet):

Translations

Noun

still (plural stills)

1. A period of calm or silence.

2. (photography) A photograph, as opposed to movie footage.
3. (slang) A resident of the Falkland Islands.
4. A steep hill or ascent.

   (Can we find and add a quotation of W. Browne to this entry?)

Synonyms

• (period of calm): lull, rest, respite; quiet, tranquility
• (resident of the Falkland Islands): Benny, Falklander, Kelper

Translations

Etymology 2

Via Middle English [Term?], ultimately from Latin stilla.

Noun

still (plural stills)

1. A device for distilling liquids.
2. (catering) A large water boiler used to make tea and coffee.
3. (catering) The area in a restaurant used to make tea and coffee, separate from the main kitchen.
4. A building where liquors are distilled; a distillery.

Translations

See also

• pot still

Etymology 3

From Old English stillan.

Verb

still (third-person singular simple present stills, present participle stilling, simple past and past participle stilled)

1. To calm down, to quiet.

Synonyms

• becalm, lull, quell; see also Thesaurus:pacify

Translations

Etymology 4

Aphetic form of distil, or from Latin stillare.

Verb

still (third-person singular simple present stills, present participle stilling, simple past and past participle stilled)

1. (obsolete) To trickle, drip.
2. To cause to fall by drops.
3. To expel spirit from by heat, or to evaporate and condense in a refrigeratory; to distill.

Translations

Anagrams

• Tills, lilts, tills

German

Etymology

From Middle High German [Term?], from Old High German stilli.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?t?l/

Adjective

still (comparative stiller, superlative am stillsten)

1. quiet, silent

Declension

Adverb

still

1. quietly, silently

Further reading

• “still” in Duden online

Hunsrik

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?til/

Adjective

still

1. quiet, silent

Further reading

• Online Hunsrik Dictionary

Norwegian Bokmål

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /st?l/
• Rhymes: -?l

Verb

still

1. imperative of stille

Norwegian Nynorsk

Etymology 1

Verb

still

1. imperative of stilla

Etymology 2

Adjective

still (masculine and feminine still, neuter stilt, definite singular and plural stille, comparative stillare, indefinite superlative stillast, definite superlative stillaste)

1. Alternative form of stille

Spanish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /es?til/, [es?t?il]

Noun

still m (plural stills)

1. (photography) still