cue

[ kyoo ]

/ kyu /

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See synonyms for: cue / cued / cues / cuing on Thesaurus.com

noun

anything said or done, on or off stage, that is followed by a specific line or action: An off-stage door slam was his cue to enter.

anything that excites to action; stimulus.

a hint; intimation; guiding suggestion.

the part a person is to play; a prescribed or necessary course of action.

a sensory signal used to identify experiences, facilitate memory, or organize responses.

Archaic. frame of mind; mood.

verb (used with object), cued, cu·ing.

to provide with a cue or indication; give a cue to; prompt: Will you cue me on my lines?

to insert, or direct to come in, in a specific place in a musical or dramatic performance (usually followed by in or into): to cue in a lighting effect.

to search for and reach (a specific track on a recording) (sometimes followed by up).

OTHER WORDS FOR cue

1 signal.

3 sign, hint, key, tip, inkling.

See synonyms for cue on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?

There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?

Question 1 of 7

Which sentence is correct?

His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Idioms about cue

cue (someone) in, Informal. to inform; give instructions, information, news, etc., to: Cue him in on the plans for the dance.

miss a cue,

to fail to respond to a cue.
Informal. to miss the point: You could tell by his expression that he had missed a cue.

Origin of cue

First recorded in 1545–55; spelled name of the letter q as an abbreviation (found in acting scripts) of Latin quandō “when”

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH cue

cue , queue

Other definitions for cue (2 of 3)

cue²

[ kyoo ]

/ kyu /

noun

a long, tapering rod, tipped with a soft leather pad, used to strike the ball in billiards, pool, etc.

a long, usually wooden stick with a concave head, used to propel the disks in shuffleboard.

a queue or braid of hair worn behind the head.

a queue or file, as of persons awaiting their turn.

verb (used with object), cued, cu·ing.

to tie into a queue.

to strike with a cue.

Origin of cue

First recorded in 1740–50; from French queue “tail,” Old French cöe, coue, from Latin cōda, popular form of cauda “tail”; cf. coward, queue

Other definitions for cue (3 of 3)

cue³

[ kyoo ]

/ kyu /

noun

the letter Q, q.

Origin of cue

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English cu; conventional adaptation in spelling of the letter name

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use cue in a sentence

The first is that the brain’s reward system — the one that feels good when we do something we like — becomes less sensitive to food cues.
Warning! Junk foods can harm a teen’s brain|Sharon Oosthoek|November 19, 2020|Science News For Students
Like humans in a VR game, their brains processed the virtual environment—a single path with houses, blocks, and other visual cues—like a real-world road.
How Do We Remember Places? This Study Used Lasers and VR to Point the Way|Shelly Fan|November 10, 2020|Singularity Hub
And, on cue, the Europe Stoxx 600 Banks index is up more than 3% in early morning trade again this morning.
Value stocks in, growth stocks out—has the mighty 2020 bull market rally hit an inflection point?|Bernhard Warner|November 10, 2020|Fortune
But, more importantly, the subtle feedback gives you ambient cues about what you should be feeling and experiencing.
Video games feel different on the PlayStation 5 and that’s a good thing|Stan Horaczek|November 9, 2020|Popular-Science

Right on cue, the $SPX has rebounded from the Oct slide in order to maintain the remarkable parallel with the 2009 roadmap.
November is historically the best month for investors in an election year. Will 2020 be different?|Anne Sraders|November 3, 2020|Fortune
Maps, frequently based on slender suppositions, were cued up.
Who Gagged the Search for MH370?|Clive Irving|June 22, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The disc jockey mumbled a few words, then played whatever record was cued up on his turntable.
I Reported John Lennon's Death|Steve North|December 7, 2010|DAILY BEAST
Memories of post-Katrina revulsion at incompetence were cued up.
No More Mr. Eloquent|Simon Schama|January 20, 2009|DAILY BEAST
He certainly cued in wrong and found the sight shocking to his Plymouth Rock proprieties.
The Crimson Gardenia and Other Tales of Adventure|Rex Beach
His dark eyes and his pensive expression were none the less effective for the white powder on his cued hair.
The Continental Dragoon|Robert Neilson Stephens
"I am the slave of the girl Dor-oth-y, who res-cued me from pris-on," replied the machine.
Ozma of Oz|L. Frank Baum

British Dictionary definitions for cue (1 of 2)

cue¹

/ (kjuː) /

noun

(in the theatre, films, music, etc) anything spoken or done that serves as a signal to an actor, musician, etc, to follow with specific lines or action
on cue at the right moment

a signal or reminder to do something

psychol the part of any sensory pattern that is identified as the signal for a response

the part, function, or action assigned to or expected of a person

verb cues, cueing or cued

(tr) to give a cue or cues to (an actor)

(usually foll by in or into) to signal (to something or somebody) at a specific moment in a musical or dramatic performanceto cue in a flourish of trumpets

(tr) to give information or a reminder to (someone)

(intr) to signal the commencement of filming, as with the word "Action!"

Word Origin for cue

C16: probably from name of the letter q, used in an actor's script to represent Latin quando when

British Dictionary definitions for cue (2 of 2)

cue²

/ (kjuː) /

noun

billiards snooker a long tapered shaft with a leather tip, used to drive the balls

hair caught at the back forming a tail or braid

US a variant spelling of queue

verb cues, cueing or cued

to drive (a ball) with a cue

(tr) to twist or tie (the hair) into a cue

Word Origin for cue

C18: variant of queue

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

cue

OTHER WORDS FOR cue

Idioms about cue

Origin of cue

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH cue

Other definitions for cue (2 of 3)

Origin of cue

Other definitions for cue (3 of 3)

Origin of cue

Words related to cue

How to use cue in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for cue (1 of 2)

Word Origin for cue

British Dictionary definitions for cue (2 of 2)

Word Origin for cue