purport
Americanverb (used with object)
noun
-
the meaning, import, or sense.
the main purport of your letter.
- Synonyms:
- gist, trend, drift, implication
-
purpose; intention; object.
the main purport of their visit to France.
verb
-
to claim (to be a certain thing, etc) by manner or appearance, esp falsely
-
(esp of speech or writing) to signify or imply
noun
-
meaning; significance
-
purpose; object; intention
Synonym Usage
See meaning.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
has purportedperfect 3rd person singular
-
have purportedperfect
-
are purportingprogressive
-
have been purportingperfect progressive
-
has been purportingperfect progressive 3rd person singular
-
am purportingprogressive 1st person singular
-
is purportingprogressive 3rd person singular
-
purportingparticiple
-
purportssingular 3rd person
Past
-
had purportedperfect
-
were purportingprogressive plural
-
was purportingprogressive singular
-
purportedsimple
-
purportedparticiple
-
had been purportingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of purport
First recorded in 1375–1425; (verb) late Middle English purporten, from Anglo-French purporter “to mean, signify,” Old French porporter “to carry, convey,” equivalent to pur- pro- 1 + porter “to carry” (from Latin portāre ); (noun) late Middle English, from Anglo-French, derivative of the verb
Explanation
Use purport when you want to convince people about something that might not be true, like when you purport that the dog ate your homework. The verb purport can mean "to claim" — whether you mean it or not — or "to intend," like when you purport to study all night. So it makes sense that as a noun, purport means the intention or purpose, like the purport of a political candidate's speech was to get your vote. If the speech was long and hard to follow, you might be lucky just to get the purport, which here means "the main point or meaning."
Vocabulary lists containing purport
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
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Words That Could Go Either Way: Synonyms for "Maybe"
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Grade 12, List 1
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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.
I come now to the Votive Table, which is rich in poetick Graces, however overwhelm’d with Depravation: and Sir George seems as much to have mistaken the Purport, as the Words, of the Inscription.
From Preface to the Works of Shakespeare (1734) by Dick, Hugh G.
I fear that I am not sufficiently acquainted with your Vernacular to grasp the full Purport of what has occurred here.
From More Fables by Ade, George
An Extract of a Letter from on board a Ship in Lisbon Harbour, Nov: 19, to the same Purport.
From Lady Good-for-Nothing by Quiller-Couch, Arthur Thomas, Sir
Americans and the English cannot understand the Purport of this Clause.
From American Institutions and Their Influence by Tocqueville, Alexis de
Washington on the Purport of the Letter from the Secret Committee.
From The Campaign of 1776 around New York and Brooklyn by Johnston, Henry P.
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.
