imply
//ɪmˈplaɪ//
Forms
- present (v1)
- imply
- past (v2)
- implied
- past participle (v3)
- implied
- present participle
- implying
- 3rd person singular
- implies
- Plural
- implys
Definitions
1.To have as a necessary consequence; to lead to (something) as a consequence.
- The proposition that "all dogs are mammals" implies that my dog is a mammal.
- Our upper bound is the best possible, and it implies the existence of low-rank factorizations of positive semidefinite bivariate matrix polynomials and representations of biforms as sums of few squares.
2.To suggest by logical inference.
- When I state that your dog is brown, I am not implying that all dogs are brown.
3.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?
- Naturally, the river wasn't wrinkled or creased at all, wrong words, implying something unfluid like skin, something unenduring, prey to age.
1.A logic gate that implements material implication.
Frequency
Overall
Uncommon· #2610
By learning goal
- Everyday conversation
- Rare
- General reading & writing
- Uncommon
- Academic
- Rare
- Literature
- Rare
Etymology
From Middle English implien, emplien, borrowed from Old French emplier, from Latin implicare (“to infold, involve”), from in (“in”) + plicare (“to fold”).
Doublet of employ and implicate.