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Mean (Verb)

Meaning¹

Destine or designate for a certain purpose; "These flowers were meant for you".

Classification

Verbs of thinking, judging, analyzing, doubting.

Examples

The old mansion was meant to be a museum but was later converted into a hotel.
This key was meant to unlock the secret compartment.
The expensive gift was meant for my sister, not me.
I was meant to attend the meeting, but I got stuck in traffic.
The research facility was meant to develop life-saving medical treatments.

Hypernyms

Meaning²

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

Classification

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing.

Examples

When he said you are strong he didn't mean that you are physically fit, he meant you are emotionally resilient.
She explained that her poem doesn't literally mean what the words say; it's an allegory.
I never understand what you mean when you use technical terms in your explanation.
When the poet wrote "the wind whispers secrets" he didn't mean that the wind actually speaks.
When she said she'd be there soon, what did she really mean in terms of actual time.

Synonyms

Intend

Hyponyms

Related Words

Meaning (noun)

Meaning³

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

Classification

Verbs of being, having, spatial relations.

Examples

Her new job means she will have to relocate to another city.
This discovery means that our previous theories about the universe are no longer valid.
His absence from school for a month means he will have to retake the entire semester.
A rise in global temperatures means the polar ice caps will continue to melt at an alarming rate.
Their financial difficulties mean they will have to cut down on unnecessary expenses.

Synonyms

Entail
Imply

Hypernyms

Necessitate

Meaning⁴

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

Classification

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing.

Examples

The musical symbol ' Treble clef' means the notes in this staff are higher pitched.
To 'break a leg' means 'good luck' in the theater community.
This alert icon means an error occurred in the system.
Her smile often means she is hiding something.
The color 'purple' in that culture means royalty.

Synonyms

Hyponyms

Refer

Related Words

Meaning (noun)

Meaning⁵

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".

Classification

Verbs of thinking, judging, analyzing, doubting.

Examples

I only meant to make your life easier with my suggestion.
I didn't mean to wake you up, I was just trying to get some water.
What did you mean to achieve by hiding the gift until now.
She didn't mean to cause any trouble, she just wanted to help.
I meant to send you a gift, but I completely forgot about it.

Synonyms

Think
Intend

Hyponyms

Meaning⁶

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!".

Classification

Verbs of thinking, judging, analyzing, doubting.

Examples

I mean the beach on the other side of the city when I say my favorite place to relax.
When I talk about my favorite sports team, I mean the one that plays in the champions league.
I mean the house at the end of the street when I said someone was having a loud party last night.
She meant him when she said some people in the office don't pull their weight.
I mean my sister when I said someone borrowed money without permission.