implicit

American  

[im-plis-it] / ɪmˈplɪs ɪt /

adjective

1. implied, rather than expressly stated.

   implicit agreement.

2. unquestioning or unreserved; unconditional: implicit obedience;

   implicit trust;

   implicit obedience;

   implicit confidence.

   Synonyms:

   total, complete, absolute, unqualified

3. potentially contained (usually followed byin ).

   to bring out the drama implicit in the occasion.

4. Mathematics. (of a function) having the dependent variable not explicitly expressed in terms of the independent variables, as x 2 + y 2 = 1.

5. Obsolete. entangled.

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implicit British  

/ ɪmˈplɪsɪt /

adjective

1. not explicit; implied; indirect

   there was implicit criticism in his voice

2. absolute and unreserved; unquestioning

   you have implicit trust in him

3. contained or inherent

   to bring out the anger implicit in the argument

4. maths (of a function) having an equation of the form f( x,y ) = 0, in which y cannot be directly expressed in terms of x, as in xy + x ² + y ³ x ² = 0 Compare explicit 1

5. obsolete intertwined

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Other Word Forms

• implicitly
  adverb
• implicitness
  noun
• implicity
  noun

Etymology

Origin of implicit

First recorded in 1590–1600; from Latin implicitus “involved, obscure,” variant past participle of implicāre; see origin at implicate, -ite ²

Explanation

Use the adjective implicit when you mean that something is understood but not clearly stated. You might think you and your boyfriend might have an implicit understanding that you are going to get married, but it's probably better to talk it through. A very near synonym of implicit in this particular meaning is the word implied. But the adjective implicit also means "without any doubt," so we can say that we have implicit trust or confidence in someone. The Latin root implicāre means "to involve or entangle." Another English word with a more obvious connection to this Latin root is the verb implicate.

Example Sentences

Implicit in all this is protection for the several million American citizens who live in Mexico, the largest community of U.S. expatriates, who have thus far mostly been spared cartel violence.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 24, 2026

Implicit in those ads is a belief that any difference between people, no matter how inconsequential, creates a zero-sum conflict between them, even if there's no rational reason to think their differences should matter.

From Salon • Oct. 28, 2024

“There is nothing subtle about this ad,” said Tali Mendelberg, author of “The Race Card: Campaign Strategy, Implicit Messages, and the Norm of Equality.”

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 13, 2024

Implicit in this debate is the assumption that artificial intelligence is the same as artificial consciousness, that being smart is the same as being conscious.

From Scientific American • Sep. 8, 2023

Implicit in that statement is “we’re in this together.”

From "Outliers" by Malcolm Gladwell

Related Words

• constant
• contained
• definite
• implied
• latent
• steadfast
• tacit
• unshakable
• unspoken