intimation
noun
in·ti·ma·tion
ˌin-tə-ˈmā-shən 
plural intimations
: an indirect, usually subtle suggestion, indication, or hint
intimations that she may retire from teaching next year
It can be any time from the earliest intimation of fall, when wetland maples turn a searing red, to the third week of October, when gaudy leaves carpet the forest floor.—
Madeline Drexler
Madeline DrexlerThey bored me stiff but George had expertise and gave occasional intimations of power in reserve.—Tobias Wolff
Tobias Wolff
Examples of intimation in a Sentence
the newscaster could not resist giving a slight intimation that the voting was going contrary to predictions
Recent Examples on the Web
So after ditching it in 2021, Toyota took a few years to come up with a new Land Cruiser that does justice to the off-road intimations of the nameplate but also is approachable and mainstream in ways the old model never was.
—Dale Buss, Forbes, 31 Oct. 2024
Much of the success is owed to Russell’s immaculate lead performance, deftly blending momentous intimations via the smallest gestures, before turning on a dime to deliver big, boisterous, off-the-cuff outbursts.
—Ben Travers, IndieWire, 30 Oct. 2024
The octopus, the elephant, the great horned owl, the house cat, the giant tortoise, the chimpanzee: who, in all the vast animal kingdom, joins us in having intimations of mortality?
—Kathryn Schulz, The New Yorker, 28 Oct. 2024
Up until the 9/11 attacks, U.S. officials steered clear of any intimation of it.
—Anna Mulrine Grobe, The Christian Science Monitor, 15 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for intimation 
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Dale Buss, Forbes, 31 Oct. 2024
Much of the success is owed to Russell’s immaculate lead performance, deftly blending momentous intimations via the smallest gestures, before turning on a dime to deliver big, boisterous, off-the-cuff outbursts.
—Ben Travers, IndieWire, 30 Oct. 2024
The octopus, the elephant, the great horned owl, the house cat, the giant tortoise, the chimpanzee: who, in all the vast animal kingdom, joins us in having intimations of mortality?
—Kathryn Schulz, The New Yorker, 28 Oct. 2024
Up until the 9/11 attacks, U.S. officials steered clear of any intimation of it.
—Anna Mulrine Grobe, The Christian Science Monitor, 15 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for intimation
Dictionary Entries Near intimation
Cite this Entry
“Intimation.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/intimation. Accessed 19 Nov. 2024.
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