pipe down

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The phrase "pipe down" is an informal expression in English that means to become quiet or to stop talking. It is often used when someone is being too loud or noisy, and someone wants them to lower their volume or be silent.

Usage Instructions:

• Context: "Pipe down" is typically used in casual conversations. It’s not very formal, so it's best suited for friends, family, or informal settings.
• Tone: It can sound a bit rude or bossy, so be careful when using it. It’s often used when someone is frustrated with the noise level.

Examples:

1. Simple Example:
   • “Can you please pipe down? I’m trying to study.”
2. Contextual Example:
   • During a movie, one friend might say to another, “Hey, pipe down! You’re talking too loud!”

Advanced Usage:

In more advanced contexts, "pipe down" can be used in figurative language. For example, in a meeting or debate, someone might say: - “Let’s all pipe down and listen to what the presenter has to say.”

Word Variants:

• Piping down: This is the present participle form, which can be used in sentences like, "They are piping down now."
• Piped down: This is the past tense form, as in, "After the teacher asked them to pipe down, they piped down immediately."

Different Meanings:

"Pipe down" primarily means to be quiet, but it can also imply a reduction in noise level in a more general sense, like in music or sound.

Synonyms:

Here are some synonyms for "pipe down": - Be quiet - Shut up (more rude) - Calm down - Hush

Idioms and Phrasal Verbs:

While "pipe down" itself is a phrasal verb, it doesn’t have many direct idioms associated with it. However, here are a couple of related phrases: - “Hush”: This is a more gentle way of asking someone to be quiet. - “Keep it down”: This means to lower the volume of noise.

Summary:

To summarize, "pipe down" is an informal way of asking someone to be quiet.

Academic

Verb

1. become quiet or quieter
   • The audience fell silent when the speaker entered

Synonyms

• quieten
• hush
• quiet
• quiesce
• quiet down