signify

[sig-nuh-fahy]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR signify ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object), sig·ni·fied, sig·ni·fy·ing.

to make known by signs, speech, or action.

to be a sign of; mean; portend.

verb (used without object), sig·ni·fied, sig·ni·fy·ing.

to be of importance or consequence.

Origin of signify

1200–50; Middle English signifien < Old French signifier < Latin significāre to make a sign, indicate, mention, denote. See sign, -ify

Related formssig·ni·fi·a·ble, adjectiveun·sig·ni·fi·a·ble, adjective

Synonyms for signify

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR signify ON THESAURUS.COM

1. signal, express, indicate. 2. represent, indicate, denote, betoken, imply.

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

Related Words for signify

represent, suggest, spell, portend, imply, manifest, convey, bespeak, symbolize, proclaim, mean, exhibit, show, sign, denote, evince, carry, connote, flash, insinuate

Examples from the Web for signify

Contemporary Examples of signify

Visitors are greeted by a looming gothic gate, the kind used to signify that important residents lie behind its spires.
Brooklyn’s Gangster Graveyard
Nina Strochlic
October 23, 2014
These days the charts are full of pop singers who spill their guts and pop songs that tell us what they're supposed to signify.
The Last Great Singer-Songwriter Album
Andrew Romano
February 21, 2014
In other words, the important thing about the Yellow King and Carcosa isn't what they signify to Reggie Ledoux.
‘True Detective’ Episode 5 Review: ‘The Secret Fate of All Life’ is the Best Episode Yet
Andrew Romano
February 17, 2014
If the Iranians do actually accept the additional protocol, it will signify a major breakthrough.
Where Does Geneva Leave Us?
Matt Lerner
October 22, 2013
This could signify a lot of things: a renewed drive by labor, or some wrinkle in the tax code that I'm not aware of.
Why Are So Many New Labor Groups Forming?
Megan McArdle
June 12, 2013

Historical Examples of signify

But if you determine as we would have you, and signify it to us, we shall not stand with you for a week or so.
Clarissa, Volume 1 (of 9)
Samuel Richardson
Signify to us, now, therefore, your compliance with our wishes.
Clarissa, Volume 1 (of 9)
Samuel Richardson
Nelson replied: "Take your choice, Hardy, it does not signify much."
The Life of Horatio Lord Nelson
Robert Southey
If they do not, and if I should have occasion, I can but signify my wants to so ready a friend.
Clarissa, Volume 3 (of 9)
Samuel Richardson
What will signify expostulations against a ceremony performed?
Clarissa, Volume 3 (of 9)
Samuel Richardson

British Dictionary definitions for signify

signify

verb -fies, -fying or -fied (when tr, may take a clause as object)

(tr) to indicate, show, or suggest

(tr) to imply or portendthe clouds signified the coming storm

(tr) to stand as a symbol, sign, etc (for)

(intr) informal to be significant or important

Derived Formssignifiable, adjectivesignifier, noun

Word Origin for signify

C13: from Old French signifier, from Latin significāre, from signum a sign, mark + facere to make

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 signify

late 13c., "be a sign of, indicate, mean," from Old French signifier (12c.), from Latin significare "to make signs, show by signs, point out, express; mean, signify; foreshadow, portend," from significus (adj.), from signum "sign" (see sign (n.)) + root of facere "to make" (see factitious). Intransitive sense of "to be of importance" is attested from 1660s. Meaning "engage in mock-hostile banter" is American English black slang first recorded 1932.

...'signifying,' which in Harlemese means making a series of oblique remarks apparently addressed to no one in particular, but unmistakable in intention in such a close-knit circle. ["Down Beat," March 7, 1968]