1. (

• meaning ,
• significance ,
• signification ,
• import

) the message that is intended or expressed or signified; "what is the meaning of this sentence"; "the significance of a red traffic light"; "the signification of Chinese characters"; "the import of his announcement was ambiguous" ;

2. (

• meaning ,
• substance

) the idea that is intended; "What is the meaning of this proverb?" ;

1. (

• mean ,
• intend

) mean or intend to express or convey; "You never understand what I mean!"; "what do his words intend?" ;

2. (

• entail ,
• imply ,
• mean

) have as a logical consequence; "The water shortage means that we have to stop taking long showers" ;

3. (

• mean ,
• intend ,
• signify ,
• stand_for

) denote or connote; "`maison' means `house' in French"; "An example sentence would show what this word means" ;

4. (

• intend ,
• mean ,
• think ,

) have in mind as a purpose; "I mean no harm"; "I only meant to help you"; "She didn't think to harm me"; "We thought to return early that night" ;

5. (

• mean ,

) have a specified degree of importance; "My ex-husband means nothing to me"; "Happiness means everything" ;

6. (

• think_of ,
• have_in_mind ,
• mean ,

) intend to refer to; "I'm thinking of good food when I talk about France"; "Yes, I meant you when I complained about people who gossip!" ;

7. (

• mean ,

) destine or designate for a certain purpose; "These flowers were meant for you" ;

1. (

• meaning ,
• pregnant ,
• significant

) rich in significance or implication; "a meaning look"; "a significant silence" ;