import

[verb im-pawrt, -pohrt; noun im-pawrt, -pohrt]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR import ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object)

to bring in (merchandise, commodities, workers, etc.) from a foreign country for use, sale, processing, reexport, or services.

to bring or introduce from one use, connection, or relation into another: foreign bodies imported into the blood; foodstuffs imported from the farm.

to convey as meaning or implication; signify: Her words imported a change of attitude.

to involve as a necessary circumstance; imply: Religion imports belief.

Computers. to bring (documents, data, etc.) into one software program from another.

Archaic. to be of consequence or importance to; concern.

verb (used without object)

to be of consequence or importance; to matter: We are friends, and it does not import that we have only just met.

noun

something that is imported from abroad; an imported commodity or article.

the act of importing or bringing in; importation, as of goods from abroad: the import of foreign cars.

consequence or importance: matters of great import.

meaning; implication; purport: He felt the import of her words.

Nearby words

Origin of import

1400–50; late Middle English importen < Latin importāre. See im-¹, port⁵

SYNONYMS FOR import

10. significance, sense.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR import ON THESAURUS.COM

Related forms

im·port·a·ble, adjectiveim·port·a·bil·i·ty, nounim·port·er, nounnon·im·port, noun

o·ver·im·port, verb (used with object)pre·im·port, verb (used with object)pre·im·port, nounun·im·port·ed, adjectiveun·im·port·ing, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for import

The import of those words resonated through my entire being.
When Gary Wright Met George Harrison: Dream Weaver, John and Yoko, and More|Gary Wright|September 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
CEO Mark Thompson, a solidly-built, 6-foot-2 import from the BBC.
Dean Baquet, the NYT’s Executive Editor, on Jill Abramson, Race, Surviving Cancer—and TMZ Envy|Lloyd Grove|September 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Earlier this year, a Long Island man admitted to trying to import 40,000 piranhas from Hong Kong.
The $10 Billion Pet Cheetah and Chimp Industry|Sharon Adarlo|July 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
It also claimed that he had traveled to Turkey to buy communication equipment to import to Iran.
Is Iran’s Missing General, Ali Reza Asgari, Living in the United States?|IranWire|May 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST

After all, the four-term Congresswoman is hardly dripping with historical, or even political, import.
Michele Bachmann’s Crazy War on Women’s History|Michelle Cottle|May 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST
A low murmur sifted through the house; its import was, "He's got them both."
The Man That Corrupted Hadleyburg and Other Stories|Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens)
Absolutely nothing was gained in a military sense by shutting the import door of the Central states.
The Iron Ration|George Abel Schreiner
He, who had dreamed and longed and searched, found that the hour had been incalculable for him in its import.
The Rainbow Trail|Zane Grey
I could not understand the import of these words when I was a child, but the misfortunes of my life have helped to explain them.
My Own Affairs|Louise, Princess of Belgium
I was looking at him with riveted attention while he spoke, sublimely innocent of the import of a single word he uttered.
The Doctor's Daughter|"Vera"

British Dictionary definitions for import

import

verb (ɪmˈpɔːt, ˈɪmpɔːt)

to buy or bring in (goods or services) from a foreign countryCompare export

(tr) to bring in from an outside sourceto import foreign words into the language

rare to signify or be significant; mean; conveyto import doom

noun (ˈɪmpɔːt)

(often plural)

goods (visible imports) or services (invisible imports) that are bought from foreign countries
(as modifier)an import licence

significance or importancea man of great import

meaning or signification

Canadian informal a sportsman or -woman who is not native to the country in which he or she plays

Derived Formsimportable, adjectiveimportability, nounimporter, noun

Word Origin for import

C15: from Latin importāre to carry in, from im- + portāre to carry

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

Word Origin and History for import

import

early 15c., "convey information, express, make known, signify," from Latin importare "bring in, convey," from assimilated form of in- "into, in" (see in- (2)) + portare "to carry" (see port (n.1)). Sense of "bring in goods from abroad" first recorded c.1500. Related: Imported; importing.

import

"consequence, importance," 1580s; sense of "that which is imported" is from 1680s; both from import (v.).

import

verb (used with object)

verb (used without object)

noun

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Nearby words

Origin of import

Examples from the Web for import

import

verb (ɪmˈpɔːt, ˈɪmpɔːt)

noun (ˈɪmpɔːt)

Word Origin for import

import

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