Example:
This was my first time seeing him like this: [...], almost speechless.
The first word that came to my mind was quiet. But I think its meaning is closer to not speaking at all than speaking less.
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This was my first time seeing him like this: [...], almost speechless.
The first word that came to my mind was quiet. But I think its meaning is closer to not speaking at all than speaking less.
taciturn, closemouthed, dumb, laconic, reserved, reticent, silent, tight-lipped, uncommunicative, clammed up, not admittinganything, unable to speak, muts; speechless, dumb
broody (Very thoughtful and taciturn; sullenly silent, with the implication of hatching a plan)
The answer really depends on the context of what the situation is. If the person is usually talkative. I would say, "You're awfully quiet today. Is everything all right?" If I was describing someone to another person, I would say, "My friend, Sarah, is kinda shy. She's a quiet person." I could also say she is a private person or she is reserved. All of those would describe the fact that she usually doesn't talk much. If I was with a person and wanted them to answer my questions or share more of how they were thinking with me and they wouldn't, I would say they were "guarded" or "not very trusting", and that would also describe them not talking very much. Taciturn and laconic may be in the dictionary, and you may use them in a college paper, but you won't hear those words used in day-to-day conversation. Just saying. :) Hope this helps.
Is "mute" too far? Muteness can apply to speaking nonsense or speaking less rather than just not speaking at all.
How about, hushed?