significant

[sig-nif-i-kuhnt]

adjective

1. important and deserving of attention; of consequence.

   Their advice played a significant role in saving my marriage.

   Synonyms: weighty, momentous, consequential

2. relatively large in amount or quantity.

   a significant decrease in revenue.

3. having or expressing a meaning; indicative.

   a significant symbol of royalty.

4. having a special, secret, or disguised meaning; suggestive.

   a significant wink.

5. Statistics.,  of or relating to observations that are unlikely to occur by chance and that therefore indicate a systematic cause.

   Memory training produced a statistically significant improvement in group performance.

noun

1. something significant; a sign.

significant

/ sɪɡˈnɪfɪkənt /

adjective

1. having or expressing a meaning; indicative

2. having a covert or implied meaning; suggestive

3. important, notable, or momentous

4. statistics of or relating to a difference between a result derived from a hypothesis and its observed value that is too large to be attributed to chance and that therefore tends to refute the hypothesis

Other Word Forms

• significantly adverb
• nonsignificant adjective
• supersignificant adjective
• unsignificant adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of significant¹

First recorded in 1565–75; from Latin significant- (stem of significāns ), present participle of the verb significāre “to indicate, denote”; signify, -ant

Word History and Origins

Origin of significant¹

C16: from Latin significāre to _signify

Example Sentences

The company added that “designing and implementing a way to do this at scale, and without requiring expensive GPU clusters, is a significant achievement to scaling useful quantum computers.”

Read more on MarketWatch

According to records, Thomas James, from the Caribbean, served with the 18th Light Dragoons - the only cavalry regiment with a significant role in the Battle of Waterloo.

Read more on BBC

The service would represent a significant expansion for Zelle, which has so far limited its payment services to users in the U.S.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

“A shift in product strategy with a 1.6x strip target is significant,” say the analysts.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

"What we worry about more actually are things like the war in Sudan, which has continued to displace people in very significant numbers," Pope said.

Read more on Barron's

Related Words

• big 
• consequential 
• considerable 
• meaningful 
• momentous 
• notable 
• noteworthy 
• serious 
• substantial 
• vital 

When To Use

What are other ways to say significant?

The adjective significant describes things that are important, indicative of something, or suggestive of a hidden secret meaning. Do you know when to use significant, expressive, meaningful, and suggestive? Find out on Thesaurus.com.