imply
Americanverb (used with object)
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implies,
present (3rd person singular)
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implied,
past participle, past
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implying
present participle
verb
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to express or indicate by a hint; suggest
what are you implying by that remark?
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to suggest or involve as a necessary consequence
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logic to enable (a conclusion) to be inferred
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obsolete to entangle or enfold
Usage
See infer.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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implysimple
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impliessimple
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have impliedperfect
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has impliedperfect
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am implyingprogressive
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are implyingprogressive
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is implyingprogressive
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have been implyingperfect progressive
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has been implyingperfect progressive
Past
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impliedsimple
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had impliedperfect
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was implyingprogressive
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were implyingprogressive
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had been implyingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of imply
First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English implien, emplien, from Middle French emplier, from Latin implicāre; see implicate
Explanation
Imply means to express, suggest, or show something without stating it directly: A friend’s gruff manner would imply that she’s in a foul mood. The verb imply comes from a Latin word meaning “enfold or entangle” but has come to mean “to hint at.” You might imply something that you don’t want to outright say if you’re feeling coy. If you don’t call someone back after she leaves eight messages, you imply that you don’t want to chat. When you make a subtle suggestion, you imply.
Vocabulary lists containing imply
The SAT: Language of the Test, List 1
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Jim Burke's Academic Vocabulary List
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Words That Could Go Either Way: Synonyms for "Maybe"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
In June regulatory filings that disclosed the $21 billion in restatements, each insurer labeled them as “corrections of errors,” which would imply that they were inadvertent.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 16, 2026
"While these are merely requests and do not imply that visitors will be forcibly asked to leave, we earnestly ask for your understanding of the intent behind these guidelines and your cooperation," its statement said.
From Barron's ● Aug. 15, 2026
“Fed fund futures now imply a 57% of no rate change in September, from a 54% chance of a hike before” the report, the senior market analyst notes.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026
They then pose as reputable financial institutions, lawyers, bankers or estate officials, claiming that a wealthy person with your surname has died and imply that they may have left you a substantial inheritance.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 31, 2026
It is, however, quite bad form in biological circles to put it the other way round, to imply that the operation of insect societies has any relation at all to human affairs.
From "The Lives of a Cell" by Lewis Thomas
“Gen Z” implies something intrinsic about the people.
From Salon ● Aug. 15, 2026
"This implies that viviparity among early cynodonts originated in the mammalian lineage at least 95 to 90 million years earlier than previously thought."
From Science Daily ● Aug. 13, 2026
The higher full-year guidance of 630 million Singapore dollars to S$680 million implies S$383 million-S$433 million of revenue in 2H.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026
The verb itself implies young women are turning down viable offers, but no evidence exists for such a claim.
From Salon ● Aug. 12, 2026
A commonplace, he implies, can seem to stand as a witness too.*
From "Words Like Loaded Pistols" by Sam Leith
The extent of this growth means consumption has grown despite a reduction in real disposable income over the last year or so — which would have previously implied a recession.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 17, 2026
Offering either an explicit or implied guarantee that government-funding markets will remain open and liquid means hedge funds have less risk of being unable to finance highly leveraged trades.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026
The Telegraph also reported that Arday hired law firm Carter-Ruck to send a letter to THE which implied that the "apparent attack" on Arday might be "racially motivated".
From BBC ● Aug. 7, 2026
Some companies have implied that they might reduce prices, but they haven’t been very specific.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026
After all, there were only two logical possibilities for the nature of the void, and both implied that the infinite exists.
From "Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea" by Charles Seife
The film introduces us to Ricky Bobby’s family with a gross-out splat, implying the soon-to-be stock car racer was born in the back of a speeding Chevelle driven by his reprobate father.
From Salon ● Aug. 16, 2026
New yuan loans are forecast to total 10.560 trillion yuan in the first seven months of the year, implying a 160 billion yuan decline in July because of seasonal weakness, ANZ said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026
Apollo said it does not intend to cut any jobs in the first 12 months after the takeover has been completed, implying that passengers can expect largely the same service.
From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026
If he was implying that the money was specifically pigeonholed for an accelerated retirement of government securities, that’s untrue.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026
I repeated, implying that it was a father’s duty to provide for his children no matter what.
From "Kaffir Boy: An Autobiography" by Mark Mathabane
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
