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Inkling
Definitions
- 1 Usually preceded by forms of to give: a slight hint, implication, or suggestion given., A vague idea about something.
"[T]he present recalled the past, robed in the memories of its thousand dark and damning deeds of ignorance and superstition, and gave inklings of a brighter and better future; [...]"
- 2 a slight suggestion or vague understanding wordnet
- 3 Often preceded by forms of to get or to have: an imprecise idea or slight knowledge of something; a suspicion.
"If that a Pearl may in a Toads-head dwell, / And may be found too in an Oiſter-ſhell; / If things that promiſe nothing, do contain / What better is then Gold; who will diſdain / (That have an inkling of it,) there to look, / That they may find it?"
- 4 A desire, an inclination. British, dialectal
"I requested brother Weder to come up into the stand and commence the preaching. But, inasmuch as he had his own notion about such things, having an inkling towards Quakerism within him,—that is, not to speak until he felt moved to do so, and this inspiration was wanting,—he refused to preach, and remained on his seat in the congregation."
- 1 present participle and gerund of inkle form-of, gerund, participle, present
Etymology
From Middle English ningkiling, nyngkiling (“hint, slight indication; mention, whisper”), and then either: * possibly a variant of nikking, nyckyng (“hint, slight indication; mention, whisper”), possibly from nikken (“to mark (a text) for correction (?)”) + -ing, -inge (suffix forming gerunds from verbs); or * more likely from the rebracketing of an inklyng as a ninkiling, from Middle English inklen (“to mention (in a low voice); to tell (the truth)”) [and other forms] + -ing, -inge; inklen may be derived from inca, inke (“dread, fear; doubt; danger, risk (?)”), from Old English inca (“doubt, uncertainty; suspicion; fear; cause for complaint, grievance, grudge, ill-will, offence; quarrel; occasion, opportunity”), from Proto-Germanic *inkô (“ache; grief; regret”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₁eng-, *yenǵ- (“illness”). The English word would then be analysable as inkle + -ing. Sense 3 (“desire, inclination”) may have been influenced by incline (“to tend to believe or do something”) or French enclin (“inclined, prone”).
From inkle + -ing.
See also for "inkling"
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Unscramble this word: inkling