| Library / English Dictionary |
SIGNIFICANCE
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I. (noun)
Sense 1
Meaning:
The quality of being significant
Example:
do not underestimate the significance of nuclear power
Classified under:
Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects
Hypernyms ("significance" is a kind of...):
importance (the quality of being important and worthy of note)
Attribute:
important; significant (important in effect or meaning)
insignificant; unimportant (devoid of importance, meaning, or force)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "significance"):
historicalness (significance owing to its history)
meaningfulness (the quality of having great value or significance)
consequence; import; moment (having important effects or influence)
Antonym:
insignificance (the quality of having little or no significance)
Derivation:
significant (important in effect or meaning)
Sense 2
Meaning:
A meaning that is not expressly stated but can be inferred
Example:
the expectation was spread both by word and by implication
Synonyms:
implication; import; significance
Classified under:
Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents
Hypernyms ("significance" is a kind of...):
meaning; substance (the idea that is intended)
Derivation:
significant (rich in significance or implication)
Sense 3
Meaning:
The message that is intended or expressed or signified
Example:
the import of his announcement was ambiguous
Synonyms:
import; meaning; significance; signification
Classified under:
Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents
Hypernyms ("significance" is a kind of...):
content; message; subject matter; substance (what a communication that is about something is about)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "significance"):
lexical meaning (the meaning of a content word that depends on the nonlinguistic concepts it is used to express)
grammatical meaning (the meaning of a word that depends on its role in a sentence; varies with inflectional form)
symbolisation; symbolization (the use of symbols to convey meaning)
sense; signified (the meaning of a word or expression; the way in which a word or expression or situation can be interpreted)
connotation; intension (what you must know in order to determine the reference of an expression)
referent (something referred to; the object of a reference)
burden; core; effect; essence; gist (the central meaning or theme of a speech or literary work)
intent; purport; spirit (the intended meaning of a communication)
lesson; moral (the significance of a story or event)
nicety; nuance; refinement; shade; subtlety (a subtle difference in meaning or opinion or attitude)
overtone ((usually plural) an ulterior implicit meaning or quality)
point (a brief version of the essential meaning of something)
Derivation:
significant (rich in significance or implication)
signify (convey or express a meaning)
Context examples:
The scientific significance of the research has been described as ‘truly remarkable’ and compared to the discovery of the first fossils.
(Oldest genetic evidence of Hepatitis B virus found in ancient DNA from 4,500 year-old skeletons, University of Cambridge)
The second significance level for the detection p-value in an absolute analysis.
(Alpha2 Significance, NCI Thesaurus)
The functional significance of EGF domains in what appear to be unrelated proteins is not yet clear.
(EGF-Like Domain, NCI Thesaurus)
A type of analysis that determine the significance and/or magnitude of the difference between groups.
(Class Comparison, NCI Thesaurus)
I saw them smile, laugh—it was nothing; the light of the candles had as much soul in it as their smile; the tinkle of the bell as much significance as their laugh.
(Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë)
A person or thing equal to another in value or measure or force or effect or significance etc; being essentially equal to something.
(Equivalent, NCI Thesaurus)
“For all that, its presence has some significance,” said Holmes.
(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)
He may be uneducated, but he certainly knows how to express the significance of the written word.
(The Sea-Wolf, by Jack London)
The final result of a determination of the value, significance, or extent of.
(Assessment, NCI Thesaurus)
A coded value specifying the determination of the value, significance, or extent of an entity.
(Assessment Code, NCI Thesaurus)
