signify

signify (ˈsɪɡnɪˌfaɪ)

—vb , -fies, -fying, -fied
1.	(tr) to indicate, show, or suggest
2.	(tr) to imply or portend: the clouds signified the coming storm
3.	(tr) to stand as a symbol, sign, etc (for)
4.	informal (intr) to be significant or important

[C13: from Old French signifier, from Latin significāre, from signum a sign, mark + facere to make]

'signifiable

—*adj*

'signifier

—n

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Etymonline

Word Origin & History

signify

mid-13c., from O.Fr. signifier (12c.), from L. significare "to show by signs, mean, signify," from significus (adj.), from signum "sign" (see sign (n.)) + root of facere "to make" (see factitious). Intrans. sense of "to be of importance" is

attested from 1660s. Meaning "engage in mock-hostile banter" is Amer.Eng. black slang first recorded 1932.

"...'signifying,' which in Harlemese means making a series of oblique remarks apparently addressed to no one in particular, but unmistakable in intention in such a close-knit circle." ["Down Beat," March 7, 1968]

Slang Dictionary

signify definition

in.
to cause trouble for fun; to stir things up. (Black.) : What are all these cats signifying about anyway?
in.
to try to look more important than one really is; to brag; to strut (one's) stuff. (Black.) : See that dude signify like somebody important?

Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Example sentences

Faults in performance do not necessarily signify a dearth of skills or

abilities, social scientists have found.

The protesters were symbolically chained together to signify being shackled to

the interests of large farmers.

Fewer knots don't signify a lower-quality wool rug, but they do mean that the

rug is more likely to stretch over time.

If so, that might signify that we're close to a breakthrough.

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denote designate express imply importance intend

Matching Quote

"Even if it is given that someone understands the name 'God' to signify what is said, namely, 'that than which a greater cannot be conceived,' it does not follow that what is signified by this name exists in the nature of things, but only that it exists in the apprehension of the understanding."

-Thomas Aquinas

signify

sig·ni·fy

signify definition