The meaning of Signs

noun

The fact or process of doing something, typically to achieve an aim.

Usage examples:

Ending child labour will require action on many levels

verb

Take action on; deal with.

Usage examples:

Your request will be actioned

noun

The process of doing something, or something done, esp. for a particular purpose

Usage examples:

[ u ] quick action in calling the fire department saved many lives., [ c ] it was a reckless action…

noun

An advertisement.

Usage examples:

The latest television lager ad

noun

Short for advantage.

prefix

Denoting motion or direction to.

Usage examples:

Advance

verb

Join (something) to something else so as to increase the size, number, or amount.

Usage examples:

I've started a petition so if you would like to add your name, email me

abbreviation

Analogue digital digital, indicating that a music recording was made in analogue format before being mastered and stored digitally.

noun

Any of a range of behavioural disorders occurring primarily in children, including such symptoms as poor concentration, hyperactivity, and learning difficulties.

noun

An advertisement.

Usage examples:

Amid all the gloom and doom in the advertising industry giant adverts seem to be bucking the trend.

verb

Refer to in speaking or writing.

Usage examples:

I have already adverted to the solar revolution

noun

A notice or announcement in a public medium promoting a product, service, or event or publicizing a job vacancy.

Usage examples:

Advertisements for alcoholic drinks

noun

A paid notice that tells people about a product or service

Usage examples:

I saw an advertisement for the job in yesterday’s paper.

noun

A picture, sign, etc. that is used to make a product or service known and persuade people to buy it

Usage examples:

An advertisement for sth her first modelling job was in an advertisement for baked beans., place/pu…

noun

A weapon consisting of a thin, straight stick with a sharp point, designed to be shot from a bow.

Usage examples:

I've never used a bow and arrow

verb

Move or appear to move swiftly and directly.

Usage examples:

Lights arrowed down into the airport

noun

A long, thin stick, pointed at one end, that can be shot from a bow

noun

Evidence or proof of something.

Usage examples:

Their vocabulary is no attestation to your value as a parent

noun

A formal statement that you make and officially say is true

noun

A sign of what will happen in the future; an omen.

Usage examples:

They heard the sound as an augury of death

verb

Make a gesture with the hand, arm, or head to encourage or instruct someone to approach or follow.

Usage examples:

Miranda beckoned to adam

verb

To move your hand or head in a way that tells someone to come nearer

Usage examples:

[ i ] fargis beckoned to the waiter.

noun

A printed or written statement of the money owed for goods or services.

Usage examples:

The bill for their meal came to £17

verb

List (a person or event) in a programme.

Usage examples:

They were billed to appear but did not show up

verb

(of birds, especially doves) stroke bill with bill during courtship.

Usage examples:

Two birds, perfectly white, pink-beaked, dark-eyed, pigeons, settled on the ledge outside my window…

noun

A long, thin, flat piece of wood or other hard material, used for floors or other building purposes.

Usage examples:

Loose boards creaked as i walked on them

verb

Get on or into (a ship, aircraft, or other vehicle).

Usage examples:

We boarded the plane for oslo

noun

A thin, flat piece of hard material such as wood or plastic

Usage examples:

The floor boards of the old house squeaked as he walked across them., an ironing board, a cheese bo…

noun

A thing said or done that serves as a signal to an actor or other performer to enter or to begin their speech or performance.

Usage examples:

She had not yet been given her cue to come out on to the dais

verb

Give a cue to or for.

Usage examples:

Ros and guil, cued by hamlet, also bow deeply

verb

Use a cue to strike the ball.

Usage examples:

Mark cued well early on

phrasal verb

Write down hastily

phrasal verb

To write something quickly, putting little effort into it

Usage examples:

She dashed the letter off in five minutes.

noun

An act of showing that something exists or is true by giving proof or evidence.

Usage examples:

His demonstration of the need for computer corpora in language study is convincing

noun

The act of showing someone how to do something or how something works

Usage examples:

[ c ] let me give you a demonstration of how the camera works., a demonstration of friendship, stud…

noun

The act of showing someone how to use a product or how a new system or product works

Usage examples:

An online sales demonstration, trade shows and product demonstrations are excellent ways to build y…

adjective

Extending or moving from one place to another without changing direction or stopping.

Usage examples:

There was no direct flight that day

adverb

With no one or nothing in between.

Usage examples:

They seem reluctant to deal with me direct

verb

Control the operations of; manage or govern.

Usage examples:

An economic elite directed the nation's affairs

noun

The available body of facts or information indicating whether a belief or proposition is true or valid.

Usage examples:

The study finds little evidence of overt discrimination

verb

Be or show evidence of.

Usage examples:

The quality of the bracelet, as evidenced by the workmanship, is exceptional

noun

Anything that helps to prove that something is or is not true

Usage examples:

These figures are being given as evidence of economic growth., the fbi has found no evidence of a c…

noun

An advance warning.

Usage examples:

Officials had no forewarning of the attacks

verb

Inform (someone) of a possible future danger or problem.

Usage examples:

He had been forewarned of a coup plot

verb

Present participle of forewarn

Usage examples:

[ + (that) ] the employees had been forewarned (that) the end-of-year financial results would be po…

verb

Use gestures, especially dramatic ones, instead of speaking or to emphasize one's words.

Usage examples:

They were shouting and gesticulating frantically at drivers who did not slow down

noun

A gesture, especially a dramatic one, used instead of speaking or to emphasize one's words.

Usage examples:

He punctuated his speech with wild gesticulations

noun

Movements with your hands or arms intended to express something or to emphasize what you are saying

Usage examples:

She was waving her hands in excited gesticulations., the jokes are told with so much gesticulation …

noun

A movement of part of the body, especially a hand or the head, to express an idea or meaning.

Usage examples:

Alex made a gesture of apology

verb

Make a gesture.

Usage examples:

She gestured meaningfully with the pistol

Motion of hands or body to emphasize a thought or feeling

noun

A slight or indirect indication or suggestion.

Usage examples:

He has given no hint of his views

verb

Suggest or indicate something indirectly or covertly.

Usage examples:

The minister hinted at a possible change of heart

verb

Point out; show.

Usage examples:

Dotted lines indicate the text's margins

verb

To show or signal a direction or warning, or to make something clear

Usage examples:

[ t ] these statistics might indicate quality problems., [ + that clause ] she did not move or indi…

verb

To show something, point to something, or make something clear

Usage examples:

Indicate sth to sb retailers should indicate to the consumer the exact weight of the produce., the …

noun

A sign or piece of information that indicates something.

Usage examples:

The visit was an indication of the improvement in relations between the countries

noun

A sign that something exists, is true, or is likely to happen

Usage examples:

An indication that there are few indications that the economy is on an upswing., an indication of s…

noun

A thing that indicates the state or level of something.

Usage examples:

Car ownership is frequently used as an indicator of affluence

noun

A sign or signal that shows something exists or is true, or that makes something clear

Usage examples:

Housing permits are an indicator of the state’s economic health., the car’s speedometer and tempera…

noun

Something that shows what a situation is like or how it is changing

Usage examples:

Indicator of sth rising orders are an indicator of the health of the manufacturing sector., key/imp…

verb

Write or carve (words or symbols) on something, especially as a formal or permanent record.

Usage examples:

His name was inscribed on the new silver trophy

verb

To write words in a book or cut words onto the surface of an object

Usage examples:

She inscribed the book, "to my number-one fan.", wind and rain wore away the inscriptions on the gr…

noun

An indication or hint.

Usage examples:

The first intimations of trouble

plural noun

The study of the way in which certain body movements and gestures serve as a form of non-verbal communication.

Usage examples:

Other kinds of human communication [besides speech] are sometimes called language: body language, o…

noun

The study of how people use body movements when they are communicating with other people

Usage examples:

The science of kinesics is now more than fifty years old., the purpose of this research assignment …

noun

An event, action, or object that clearly shows or embodies something abstract or theoretical.

Usage examples:

The first obvious manifestations of global warming

noun

A sign showing the existence of a particular condition

Usage examples:

His refusal to see us was a manifestation of his guilt.

noun

A small area on a surface having a different colour from its surroundings, typically one caused by damage or dirt.

Usage examples:

The blow left a red mark down one side of her face

verb

Make a visible impression or stain on.

Usage examples:

He fingered the photograph gently, careful not to mark it

noun

(until the introduction of the euro in 2002) the basic monetary unit of germany, equal to 100 pfennig; a deutschmark.

Usage examples:

Germany spent billions of marks to save the french franc from speculators

noun

An object used to indicate a position, place, or route.

Usage examples:

They erected a granite marker at the crash site

noun

A symbol or object that gives information

Usage examples:

When the boats reached the halfway marker, the wind started to pick up., she used a yellow, felt-ti…

noun

A sign that shows what something is like or proves that something exists

Usage examples:

A marker of sth the company sees its invitation to join the business forum as a marker of success.,…

noun

The action or process of moving or being moved.

Usage examples:

The laws of planetary motion

verb

Direct or command (someone) with a movement of the hand or head.

Usage examples:

He motioned dennis to a plush chair

noun

The act or process of moving, or a particular movement

Usage examples:

[ u ] his range of motion was exactly equal on both sides., [ c ] she moved her finger in a circula…

noun

An act of moving.

Usage examples:

A slight movement of the body

noun

The act or process of changing a situation or event, or of changing the way something happens or is done

Usage examples:

[ c ] there has been a movement toward smaller families., the women’s movement works for better job…

noun

A change in a number, price, etc. for example on a financial market

Usage examples:

Movements in sth short-term movements in currency are difficult to predict., this stock market repo…

verb

Lower and raise one's head slightly and briefly, especially in greeting, assent, or understanding, or to give someone a signal.

Usage examples:

He looked around for support and everyone nodded

noun

An act of nodding the head.

Usage examples:

At a nod from his father he left the room

verb

To move the head down and then up again quickly, esp. to show agreement, approval, or greeting

Usage examples:

[ i/t ] the teacher nodded (his head) in agreement., he gave her a nod of recognition.

noun

The fact of observing or paying attention to something.

Usage examples:

Their silence did not escape my notice

verb

Become aware of.

Usage examples:

He noticed the youths behaving suspiciously

verb

To see or become conscious of something or someone

Usage examples:

I noticed a crack in the ceiling., mary waved at the man but he didn't seem to notice., [ + (that) …

noun

An event regarded as a portent of good or evil.

Usage examples:

The ghost's appearance was an ill omen

noun

An event that is thought to tell something about the future

Usage examples:

Scoring that goal was an omen of things to come.

noun

An instrument for writing or drawing with ink, typically consisting of a metal nib or ball, or a nylon tip, fitted into a metal or plastic holder.

Usage examples:

These include a cuddly toy, a ball, pens, pencils and paper, a toothbrush and toothpaste.

verb

Write or compose.

Usage examples:

Olivia penned award-winning poetry

verb

Put or keep (an animal) in a pen.

Usage examples:

It was the practice to pen the sheep for clipping

noun

An instrument for writing or drawing, consisting of a thin stick of graphite or a similar substance enclosed in a long thin piece of wood or fixed in a cylindrical case.

Usage examples:

Have a pencil and paper ready

verb

Write, draw, or colour with a pencil.

Usage examples:

A previous owner has pencilled their name inside the cover

noun

A thin, usually wooden, tube-shaped device for writing or drawing which has colored material in the center and a point at one end

Usage examples:

[ c ] colored pencils, [ u ] make your corrections in pencil (= using a pencil).

noun

A printed or handwritten notice or sign for public display, either fixed to a wall or carried during a demonstration.

Usage examples:

The article says that his followers already have the placards for the demonstrations printed up and…

verb

Cover with notices.

Usage examples:

They were placarding the town with posters

noun

A notice or sign hung in a public place or carried by people

Usage examples:

Foley’s placard read, "go home."

noun

A flat dish, typically circular and made of china, from which food is eaten or served.

Usage examples:

He pushed his empty plate to one side and sipped his wine

verb

Cover (a metal object) with a thin coating of a different metal.

Usage examples:

The nickel is plated on the alloy or steel by using heat and chemistry.

noun

Dish on which food is served or from which food is eaten

noun

A long, thin piece of metal on a scale or dial which moves to indicate a figure or position.

Usage examples:

If the pointer moves right, the wind is from the right

noun

Any of various things used for pointing, esp. a long, thin stick

Usage examples:

The lecturer used a pointer to show what part or the diagram he was referring to., the booklet give…

noun

Something that is used for pointing at things, for example a long thin stick that you hold to direct attention to a place on a map or words on a board, etc.

Usage examples:

A laser pointer, which directs a small spot of light onto the screen is ideal when you are giving a…

noun

A sign or warning that a momentous or calamitous event is likely to happen.

Usage examples:

Many birds are regarded as being portents of death

noun

A sign that something bad is likely to happen in the future

Usage examples:

For the economy, the portents are extremely gloomy., is it true that cows lying down in a field are…

noun

A large printed picture used for decoration.

Usage examples:

Art is not alien; we all have pictures, posters and decorations hanging on our walls at home.

verb

Put up posters in an area.

Usage examples:

They even got a little overzealous, and postered over some election signs

noun

A large printed picture or notice put up for advertising or decoration

Usage examples:

She had a poster of some rock star on the wall.

verb

Be a sign or warning of (an imminent event, typically an unwelcome one).

Usage examples:

The heavy clouds above the moorland presaged snow

noun

An omen or portent.

Usage examples:

The fever was a sombre presage of his final illness

verb

To show or suggest that something, often something unpleasant, will happen

Usage examples:

But still the economy is not showing signs of any of the excesses that normally presage a recession.

noun

Evidence or argument establishing a fact or the truth of a statement.

Usage examples:

You will be asked to give proof of your identity

adjective

Able to withstand something damaging; resistant.

Usage examples:

The marine battle armour was proof against most weapons

verb

Make (fabric) waterproof.

Usage examples:

If you are using a piece of lightweight canvas it will be necessary to proof the fabric when complete

verb

Move to or place in a particular position.

Usage examples:

I put my hand out towards her

noun

A throw of a shot or weight.

Usage examples:

Nichols recorded a put of 61.05 on his third attempt.

Cause to be in a certain state

verb

Write (something) in a hurried, careless way.

Usage examples:

Charlie scrawled his signature

noun

An example of hurried, careless writing.

Usage examples:

The page was covered in scrawls and doodles

verb

Write carelessly

verb

Write or draw (something) carelessly or hurriedly.

Usage examples:

He took the clipboard and scribbled something illegible

noun

A piece of writing or a picture produced carelessly or hurriedly.

Usage examples:

Illegible scribbles

verb

Card (wool, cotton, etc.) coarsely.

Usage examples:

The machine was installed by the owners to scribble wool brought in by customers

noun

An inscribed or painted symbol considered to have magical power.

Usage examples:

He used to paint his sigils onto the speakers of radios - empowering the sound!

noun

A gesture, action, or sound that is used to convey information or instructions, typically by prearrangement between the parties concerned.

Usage examples:

The firing of the gun was the signal for a chain of beacons to be lit

verb

Convey information or instructions by means of a gesture, action, or sound.

Usage examples:

Hold your fire until i signal

adjective

Striking in extent, seriousness, or importance; outstanding.

Usage examples:

Their signal failure to achieve a satisfactory solution to the problem

noun

A board displaying the name or logo of a business or product.

Usage examples:

A shop with its name painted on a signboard over the door

noun

A sign with information on it or showing the name of a business, school, hospital, etc.

Usage examples:

A signboard by the entrance proclaimed that the business had been established in 1852.

noun

A sign giving information such as the direction and distance to a nearby town, typically found at a road junction.

Usage examples:

Town traffic and through traffic are already directed by the latest signposts to use southbroom roa…

verb

Provide (a route or area) with a signpost or signposts.

Usage examples:

Most of the walks were well signposted

noun

An adhesive label or notice, generally printed or illustrated.

Usage examples:

A disabled sticker for our car

noun

A small piece of paper with a picture or writing on one side and a sticky substance on the other

Usage examples:

Dana collects stickers of cartoon characters.

noun

A small piece of paper or plastic with a picture or writing on one side and glue or a similar substance on the other side, so that it will fix onto a surface

Usage examples:

The painting had a sticker on saying "sold"., there were two different price stickers on the shoes …

noun

An idea or plan put forward for consideration.

Usage examples:

Here are some suggestions for tackling the problem

noun

An idea, possible plan, or action that is mentioned for other people to consider

Usage examples:

[ c ] she made some helpful suggestions on how to cut our costs., [ c ] they didn’t like my suggest…

noun

A physical or mental feature which is regarded as indicating a condition of disease, particularly such a feature that is apparent to the patient.

Usage examples:

Dental problems may be a symptom of other illness

noun

Any feeling of illness or physical or mental change that is caused by a disease

Usage examples:

Muscle aches and fever are symptoms of the flu., this endless debate is a symptom of our lack of co…

noun

A formal written or spoken statement, especially one given in a court of law.

Usage examples:

The testimony of an eyewitness

noun

A spoken or written statement that something is true, esp. one given in a court of law, or the act of giving such a statement

Usage examples:

[ u ] the value of their testimony is questionable.

noun

A formal statement about something, especially one given in a court of law

Usage examples:

To give/present/provide testimony, the court heard two days of testimony from environmental experts…

noun

A thing serving as a visible or tangible representation of a fact, quality, feeling, etc.

Usage examples:

I wanted to offer you a small token of my appreciation

adjective

Done for the sake of appearances or as a symbolic gesture.

Usage examples:

Cases like these often bring just token fines from magistrates

noun

Something you give to someone or do for someone to express your feelings or intentions

Usage examples:

It isn’t a big present – it’s just a token of thanks for your help., subway tokens, a token fee, a …

verb

Sign and accept liability under (an insurance policy), thus guaranteeing payment in case loss or damage occurs.

Usage examples:

The policy, underwritten at lloyd's, indemnifies trustees against loss arising from wrongful acts

verb

To support something that costs money by promising to pay for it, or by promising to pay if necessary to protect others who are risking their money

Usage examples:

The museum show was largely underwritten by a grant from the government of sweden.

verb

To give an activity financial support and take responsibility for paying any costs if it fails

Usage examples:

He underwrote a friend's development company in new york., many businesses have underwritten the ev…

noun

A statement or event that warns of something or that serves as a cautionary example.

Usage examples:

Police issued a warning about fake £20 notes

verb

Inform someone in advance of a possible danger, problem, or other unpleasant situation.

Usage examples:

His father had warned him of what might happen

noun

Notice of a possible danger or problem, so that it can be prevented or avoided

Usage examples:

[ c ] flood warnings were issued by the national weather service., [ u ] the earthquake struck with…

verb

Move one's hand to and fro in greeting or as a signal.

Usage examples:

He waved to me from the train

noun

A long body of water curling into an arched form and breaking on the shore.

Usage examples:

He was swept out to sea by a freak wave

verb

(physics) a movement up and down or back and forth

noun

A sign forming one of a series used to mark out a route, especially a footpath or bridle path.

Usage examples:

Just before a sign: ‘private no entry’, take a path on the left, by a red waymarker.

verb

Identify (a route) with a waymark.

Usage examples:

The trail is waymarked with blue arrows

verb

Mark (letters, words, or other symbols) on a surface, typically paper, with a pen, pencil, or similar implement.

Usage examples:

He wrote his name on the paper

Name the letters that comprise the accepted form of

verb

To create something for other people to read or use, such as a book, poem, letter, or piece of music

Usage examples:

[ t ] to write a poem/a story/a textbook, [ t ] they wrote some of the best songs of the 70s., [ t …