signify
Americanverb
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(tr) to indicate, show, or suggest
-
(tr) to imply or portend
the clouds signified the coming storm
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(tr) to stand as a symbol, sign, etc (for)
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informal (intr) to be significant or important
Other Word Forms
- signifiable adjective
- signifier noun
- unsignifiable adjective
Etymology
Origin of signify
First recorded in 1200–50; Middle English signifien, from Old French signifier, from Latin significāre “to make a sign, indicate, mention, denote”; equivalent to sign + -ify
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Few companies signify the risk that comes with buying a hot tech IPO more than Figma.
For anyone well into adulthood, it may feel jarring to be told that your brain is still an “adolescent,” but this term really just signifies that your brain is in a stage of key changes.
From Science Daily
Conspicuous lip color can, after all, signify a million things — from class status to sardonic camp.
From Salon
Look no further than iconic horror films like “Cloverfield” or “The Ring,” where glitches signify the presence of something unnatural and malicious.
“This signifies a historic moment in the return of wolves for California,” Marchwick, of California Wolf Watch, told The Times when she first showed up.
From Los Angeles Times
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
