quiescent

qui•es•cent (kwee-ES-uhnt, kwahy-)  adj

Definition:
1. marked by inactivity or repose
2. causing no trouble or symptoms
quiescence, quiescency noun; quiescently adverb; quiesce verb


Origin:
1605; from L. quiescens, prp. of quiescere, from quies "rest, quiet", from PIE base *qwi- "rest"; quiescence is from 1630s; quiesce is used in English from 1828

Related:
Synonyms: inactive, dormant, fallow, idle, immobile, inert, inoperative, motionless, passive, quiet, still, calm, placid, reposeful, reposing, restful, tranquil, undisturbed
Related Words: quiet, acquiesce, requiem

Sentence Examples:
• He acknowledged that Virginia was "not as ready as South Carolina;" but declared that "The first drop of blood spilled on the soil of South Carolina would bring Virginia, and every Southern State, with them."  He thought "it was perhaps better that Virginia, and all other border States, remain quiescent for a time, to serve as a guard against the North.  By remaining in the Union for a time, she would not only prevent coercive legislation in Congress, but any attempt for our subjugation." - The Great Conspiracy,  John Alexander Logan

• Where so many living creatures are to ply their respective powers, in pursuing the end for which they were intended, we are not to look for nature in a quiescent state; matter itself must be in motion, and the scenes of life a continued or repeated series of agitations and events. - Theory of the Earth, James Hutton

• I now strove to be entirely care-free and quiescent; and my conscience justified me in the attempt; though indeed it was not so successful as I could have wished. - Bartleby, The Scrivener, Herman Melville

Sources: Merriam-Webster, Online Etymology

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