sign on

See also: signon and sign-on

English

Pronunciation

• Audio (AU)

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Verb

sign on (third-person singular simple present signs on, present participle signing on, simple past and past participle signed on)

1. To join something, after signing.
2. To commit oneself, as to a project, a goal, an organization, a cause.

   I never signed on for this.

   • 1997 September, Bernard A. Weisberger, “What made the government grow.”, in American Heritage, volume 48, number 5, page 34:

     By January of 1996 President Clinton himself had apparently signed on with his declaration in the State of the Union message that "the era of big government is over."

   • 2011 March 26, Amanda Paulson, “How to fix America's worst schools”, in Christian Science Monitor:

     As a result, all the teachers at Phillips have signed on to a certain curriculum and follow common practices in the classroom.

3. (broadcasting) To begin broadcasting a radio or television signal, usually at the beginning of a broadcasting day and after being off the air for several hours.

   Years ago, the TV station would sign on at 5 a.m., but now it broadcasts 24 hours a day.

4. (idiomatic) To log on; to start using a computer, radio, or other multicast device; to start talking.

   Synonyms: log in, log on, sign in

   Antonyms: log off, log out, sign off, sign out

   • 2009 June 1, Randall Munroe, “Troll Slayer”, in xkcd‎^[1]:

     Edward ran a pale hand through his perfect golden-bronze hair, then signed on to 4chan.org, the darkest place on the Internet, where all his vampire compatriots spent their time.

5. (UK, intransitive) To apply to receive unemployment benefits.
   • 1999, Madeleine St John, chapter 28, in A Stairway to Paradise:

     Oh, one thing led to another; you know. I just sort of faffed around — I just did odd jobs; and sometimes in between I signed on.

Derived terms

• signing bonus
• sign-on bonus
• sign-on (noun)

 

Translations

to join, to enroll

• Galician: anotar, apuntar, inscribir, matricular (gl)

Noun

sign on (plural sign ons)

1. Nonstandard spelling of sign-on.
   • 1994, SEC Docket - Volume 57, page 753:

     After 12:30 p.m., no new sign ons are permitted.

   • 1997, Australian Hotelier: Official National Magazine of the Australian Hotels Association, Volume 14:

     However, this commitment today is a strong sign of the level of support being received from the hotel industry, especially in the top line four and five star hotels. “I am confident that the stream of sign ons will continue in the run-up to the cut-off date of the rebate scheme of December 31."

   • 2001, Skipper Lee Frazier, Tighten Up: The Autobiography of a Houston Disc Jockey, →ISBN:

     He had one of the greatest signs, one of the all time great sign ons in radio.

   • 2010, Dean Browne, IBM Cognos Business Intelligence V10.1: Intelligence Unleashed, →ISBN:

     Administrators can now elect to have users manage their own data access sign ons, which are stored under a user's profile.

Anagrams

• Ngonis, nigons, nosing