Etymology

< Middle English implien < Old French as if *emplier < Latin implicare ("to infold, involve") < in ("in") + plicare ("to fold")

Pronunciation

• Audio (US) ^[?]
• Rhymes: -aɪ

Verb

to imply (third-person singular simple present implies, present participle implying, simple past and past participle implied)

1. (transitive) To express in a suggestive manner rather than as a direct statement.
   
   "Are you implying that I don't wash my hands?!"
   
   
2. (transitive) To have as a necessary consequence.
3. (transitive) To suggest a logical inference.

Usage notes

• This is a catenative verb that takes the gerund (-ing).

Synonyms

• insinuate

Related terms

• implicate
• implication
• implicative
• implicit
• implicitness
• implision

See also

• connotation
• entail

This entry is from Wiktionary - Dictionary and thesaurus. Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.