Signify

//ˈsɪɡnɪfaɪ// verb

verb ·Common ·High school level

Definitions

Verb
  1. 1
    To create a sign out of something.
  2. 2
    denote or connote wordnet
  3. 3
    To give (something) a meaning or an importance.
  4. 4
    convey or express a meaning wordnet
  5. 5
    To show one’s intentions with a sign etc.; to indicate, announce, or portend.

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

Show 3 more definitions
  1. 6
    make known with a word or signal wordnet
  2. 7
    To mean; to betoken.

    "Life’s […] a tale / Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, / Signifying nothing."

  3. 8
    To make a difference; to matter (in negative or interrogative expressions).

    "To be but in the company of those we love, satisfies us: it does not signify whether we speak to ’em or not, whether we think on them or on indifferent things. To be near ’em is all."

Synonyms

All synonyms
meanbetokenmeanadd up toadumbrateallude

Example

More examples

"What you think doesn't signify at all."

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English signifien, from Old French signifier, from Latin significare.

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.