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hint

Pronunciation: /hɪnt/

The English word “hint” has 11 meanings listed here.

noun

  1. A clue.
  2. An implicit suggestion that avoids a direct statement.
  3. A small, barely detectable amount.
  4. Information in a computer-based font that suggests how the outlines of the font's glyphs should be distorted in order to produce, at specific sizes, a visually appealing pixel-based rendering; an instance of hinting.
  5. An instruction to the database engine as to how a query should be executed, for example whether to use an index or not.
  6. An opportunity; occasion; fit time.

verb

  1. To imply without a direct statement; to provide a clue.
  2. To bring to mind by a slight mention or remote allusion; to suggest in an indirect manner.
  3. To develop and add hints to a font.
  4. To give (a person) a hint; to tip off.

interjection

  1. Signifies that something previously said should be taken as a hint or heeded closely.

Etymology

From Middle English hinten, hynten, variant of henten (“to lay hold of, catch”), from Old English hentan (“to seize, grasp”), from Proto-West Germanic *hantijan, from Proto-Germanic *hantijaną. Doublet of hent. Related also to hunt.

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Definitions are from Wiktionary, extracted by Kaikki.org, and are available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.