denote

American  

[dih-noht] / dɪˈnoʊt /

verb (used with object)

• denotes,
  present (3rd person singular)
• denoted,
  past participle,  past
• denoting
  present participle

1. to be a mark or sign of; indicate.

   A fever often denotes an infection.

   Synonyms:

   evidence, signify, signal, mark

2. to be a name or designation for; mean.

3. to represent by a symbol, or to be a symbol for.

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denote British  

/ dɪˈnəʊt /

verb

1. to be a sign, symbol, or symptom of; indicate or designate

2. (of words, phrases, expressions, etc) to have as a literal or obvious meaning

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• denotement
  noun
• denotable
  adjective
• undenotable
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• denoting
  present
• denoted
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• denote
  simple
• denotes
  simple
• have denoted
  perfect
• has denoted
  perfect
• am denoting
  progressive
• are denoting
  progressive
• is denoting
  progressive
• have been denoting
  perfect progressive
• has been denoting
  perfect progressive

Past

• denoted
  simple
• had denoted
  perfect
• was denoting
  progressive
• were denoting
  progressive
• had been denoting
  perfect progressive

Future

• will denote
  simple
• will have denoted
  perfect
• will be denoting
  progressive
• will have been denoting
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of denote

First recorded in 1585–95; from Middle French dénoter, Latin dēnotāre “to mark out,” equivalent to dē- de- + notāre “to mark”; see note

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Compare meaning

How does denote compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• denote vs. connote

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Explanation

To denote is to draw attention to something or to show what it means. All of the googly-eyed looks that a girl gives to a boy might do more to denote her feelings for him than leaving a note in his locker. Denote comes from the Latin root dēnotāre, "to mark out." Using a particular facial expression can denote meaning, as in, "All of the crinkled foreheads and squinted eyebrows denoted a lack of understanding among the math students." Words and symbols also point to, or denote, meaning, "If he had used PST to denote the fact that he was in the Pacific time zone, she would have known that it was only 4:00 a.m. and too early to call from New York."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

denote denotes denoted denoting

Much like Porsche’s use of the word “Turbo” to denote its fastest electric cars, Subaru’s calling it “Symmetrical AWD” seems naff, even a bit underhanded.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 19, 2026

She called them unicorns to denote their exceptional rareness.

From Barron's ● Jun. 12, 2026

Men in the 17th century wore the "periwig" - long, voluminous artificial curls - to denote wealth and high social status.

From BBC ● Jun. 3, 2026

Two official signs, placed by the city, denote the location’s significance.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 12, 2026

They denote the temper and constitution and mind of different individuals.

From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis

The phrase "that dog in them" is common slang that usually denotes a fierce drive.

From BBC ● Sep. 19, 2026

Originally the symbol for Maybach-Motorenbau—a maker of sternly grand luxury cars in Germany before World War II—the monogram now denotes Mercedes-Maybach, the sub-brand launched by Stuttgart in 2014 to compete against Rolls-Royce and Bentley.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 2, 2026

This finalist for Oxford’s 2025 Word of the Year denotes the “cultivation of an impressive, attractive, or charismatic persona.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 1, 2026

Their goal in their personal work is to combine theme park-like art direction with scrappy, budget-friendly immersive theater, a term that typically denotes some level of active participation on the part of the guest.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2025

When prefixed to the name of an office, ex- denotes that the person formerly held the office named: as, ex-mayor, the former mayor.

From New Word-Analysis by William Swinton

When parking spots are scarce, supercar drivers often take to loading zones, bus stops and other spaces denoted with double yellow lines—the British marker of “no parking.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 1, 2026

This zone of extreme pessimism is denoted by the shaded area at the bottom of the chart above.

From MarketWatch ● Apr. 9, 2026

About 100 feet away, a metal post denoted the park’s boundary.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 30, 2026

The lone, unnamed gladiatrix in the 2000 film is played by stuntwoman Jane Omorogbe, denoted under “stunts” in the closing credits.

From Salon ● Nov. 26, 2024

When Newton denoted position with the variable x, he realized that velocity is simply the fluxion—what modern mathematicians call the derivative—of x: x.

From "Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea" by Charles Seife

“Drawing” in “Willem de Kooning Drawing,” the title of a revelatory exhibition at the Art Institute of Chicago, is not a noun denoting a single work of art.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026

"Code Purple" alerts, denoting air quality considered very unhealthy for everyone, not just at-risk groups, blanketed much of the city as well as the wider region, including neighboring Virginia and Maryland.

From Barron's ● Jul. 6, 2026

During her morning news conference, she seemed to mock some of the U.S. evidence, including hand-written ledgers allegedly denoting payoffs to Mexican politicians.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 30, 2026

In early scenes, he has a small curved line denoting a chubby chin, which changes over time to straight lines on each cheek, narrowing his face when he is old and infirm.

From MarketWatch ● Mar. 16, 2026

The second one makes a twirling motion beside his ear, with his finger, denoting craziness.

From "Cat's Eye" by Margaret Atwood

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