signify

English

Verb

signify (third-person singular simple present signifies, present participle signifying, simple past and past participle signified)

1. To give (something) a meaning or an importance.
2. To show one’s intentions with a sign etc.
   • (Can we date this quote?) William Shakespeare

     I'll to the king; and signify to him / That thus I have resign'd my charge to you.

   • (Can we date this quote?) Jonathan Swift

     The government should signify to the Protestants of Ireland that want of silver is not to be remedied.

3. To mean; to betoken.
   • (Can we date this quote?) William Shakespeare

     A tale / Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, / Signifying nothing.

Synonyms

• betoken

Translations

to give something a meaning

• Esperanto: signifi (eo)
• Finnish: merkitä (fi), tarkoittaa (fi)

• French: signifier (fr)

to show one's intentions

• Dutch: duidelijk maken (nl), te kennen geven (nl)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Help:How to check translations.

Translations to be checked

• Spanish: señalar, suponer, representar, significar