EN

Synonyms for imply

  • verb

Most common

indicate suggest assume signify entail involve incriminate

Synonyms by meaning

Verb

1. Indicate — to hint; to insinuate; to suggest tacitly and avoid a direct statement

indicate, suggest, assume, signify, allude, insinuate, impute, suppose, hint, argue, understand, denote, refer, bespeak, attest, stand for, intimate, betoken, manifest, moot UK, adumbrate

2. Entail — to have as a necessary consequence; to lead to (something) as a consequence

entail, import dated

3. Involve — to enfold, entangle

involve, include, comprise, ensnare, envelop, implicate dated

4. Incriminate

incriminate, inculpate

Other

mean, connote, pre-suppose, equal

Antonyms

state, declare, express

All antonyms of imply →

Definitions

  1. v. 1

    To have as a necessary consequence; to lead to (something) as a consequence.

    Correlation does not imply causation

  2. v. 2

    To hint; to insinuate; to suggest tacitly and avoid a direct statement.

    What do you mean "we need to be more careful with hygiene"? Are you implying that I don't wash my hands?

  3. v. 3

    To enfold, entangle.

  4. v. 4

    To suggest by logical inference.

    When I state that your dog is brown, I am not implying that all dogs are brown.

Related words

Word family
impliable implicate implication implicative implicit implicitness

Forms

Past participle
implied
e.g. implied → indicated, suggested, assumed, signified…

Choose the right word

Imply, Indicate, Intimate, Signify or Suggest?

One may indicate his wishes, intimate his plans, imply his opinion, signify his will, suggest a course of action.

J. C. Fernald, English Synonyms and Antonyms (1914)

Example sentences

  • suggest I suggest you wait until Tom tells you what to do.
  • assume I assume that at some point Tom will just give up.
  • indicate Indicate size, color, and style on the order form.
  • signify Clouds signify the veil of the Most High.
  • equal Is it valid to say that all men are created equal?

Popularity over time

Word1850 → 2019Trend
implysteady
suggeststeady
assumesteady
indicatefalling
signifyrising
equalfalling

Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.

By length

4 letters
mean1, hint1, moot1
5 letters
equal2, argue2, refer2, infer2
6 letters
assume2, import2, denote2, attest2, entail2, allude2, impute2
7 letters
include2, suggest2, suppose2, involve2, signify3, envelop3, ensnare2, connote2, bespeak2, betoken
8 letters
indicate3, intimate3, manifest3, comprise2
9 letters
implicate3, insinuate4, adumbrate, inculpate
10 letters
understand3
11 letters
incriminate4

The small number after each word is its number of syllables (equal2 = 2 syllables).