hint

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hint

(hĭnt)

1. A slight indication or intimation: wanted to avoid any hint of scandal.

a. A brief or indirect suggestion; a tip: stock-trading hints.

b. A statement conveying information in an indirect fashion; a clue: Give me a hint about the big news.

3. A barely perceptible amount: just a hint of color.

4. Archaic An occasion; an opportunity.

v. hint·ed, hint·ing, hints

v.tr.

1. To express or state indirectly: She hinted that she might prefer our company to theirs. See Synonyms at suggest.

2. To indicate or make evident in an indirect manner: "The diversity of observations hinted that they had no common origin" (Carl Sagan).

v.intr.

To give a hint: wouldn't hint at the true purpose of the meeting.

[Probably from Middle English hinten, henten, to catch, grasp, from Old English hentan.]

hint′er n.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

hint

(hɪnt)

1. a suggestion or implication given in an indirect or subtle manner: he dropped a hint.

2. a helpful piece of advice or practical suggestion

3. a small amount; trace

(when: intr, often foll by at; when tr, takes a clause as object) to suggest or imply indirectly

[C17: of uncertain origin]

ˈhinter n

ˈhinting n

ˈhintingly adv

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

hint

(hɪnt)
n.

1. an indirect, covert, or helpful suggestion; clue.

2. a very slight or hardly noticeable amount: a hint of garlic in the salad dressing.

3. a perceived indication; intimation: a hint of spring in the air.

4. Obs. an occasion or opportunity.

v.t.

5. to give a hint of: gray skies hinting a possible snowfall.

v.i.

6. to subtly imply (usu. fol. by at): The facts hinted at a solution to the problem.

[1595–1605; orig., opportunity, occasion, appar. variant of obsolete hent grasp, act of seizing, derivative of Middle English henten to grasp, take, Old English hentan]

hint′er, n.

syn: hint, intimate, insinuate, suggest denote the conveying of an idea to the mind indirectly or without full or explicit statement. To hint is to convey an idea covertly or indirectly, but in a way that can be understood: She hinted that she would like a bicycle for her birthday. To intimate is to give a barely perceptible hint, often with the purpose of influencing action: He intimated that a conciliation was possible. To insinuate is to hint artfully, often at what one would not dare to say directly: Someone insinuated that the defendant was guilty. suggest denotes recalling something to the mind or starting a new train of thought by means of association of ideas: Her restlessness suggested that she wanted to leave.

hint

adumbrate - Means "to give a sketchy outline or disclose only in part; hint," and its root is Latin umbra, "shadow."
allude, refer - To allude is to "mention indirectly, hint at," and to refer is to "mention directly."
infer, imply - Infer means "to deduce, reason," and imply means "to hint at, suggest."
inkle, inkling - To inkle is to communicate in an undertone or whisper, to give a hint of something, which gives us inkling.

hint

Past participle: hinted
Gerund: hinting

Imperative
hint
hint

Present
I hint
you hint
he/she/it hints
we hint
you hint
they hint

Preterite
I hinted
you hinted
he/she/it hinted
we hinted
you hinted
they hinted

Present Continuous
I am hinting
you are hinting
he/she/it is hinting
we are hinting
you are hinting
they are hinting

Present Perfect
I have hinted
you have hinted
he/she/it has hinted
we have hinted
you have hinted
they have hinted

Past Continuous
I was hinting
you were hinting
he/she/it was hinting
we were hinting
you were hinting
they were hinting

Past Perfect
I had hinted
you had hinted
he/she/it had hinted
we had hinted
you had hinted
they had hinted

Future
I will hint
you will hint
he/she/it will hint
we will hint
you will hint
they will hint

Future Perfect
I will have hinted
you will have hinted
he/she/it will have hinted
we will have hinted
you will have hinted
they will have hinted

Future Continuous
I will be hinting
you will be hinting
he/she/it will be hinting
we will be hinting
you will be hinting
they will be hinting

Present Perfect Continuous
I have been hinting
you have been hinting
he/she/it has been hinting
we have been hinting
you have been hinting
they have been hinting

Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been hinting
you will have been hinting
he/she/it will have been hinting
we will have been hinting
you will have been hinting
they will have been hinting

Past Perfect Continuous
I had been hinting
you had been hinting
he/she/it had been hinting
we had been hinting
you had been hinting
they had been hinting

Conditional
I would hint
you would hint
he/she/it would hint
we would hint
you would hint
they would hint

Past Conditional
I would have hinted
you would have hinted
he/she/it would have hinted
we would have hinted
you would have hinted
they would have hinted

Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

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Noun	1.	hint - an indirect suggestion; "not a breath of scandal ever touched her" intimation, breath proffer, proposition, suggestion - a proposal offered for acceptance or rejection; "it was a suggestion we couldn't refuse"
	2.	hint - a slight indication clue indicant, indication - something that serves to indicate or suggest; "an indication of foul play"; "indications of strain"; "symptoms are the prime indicants of disease"
	3.	hint - a slight but appreciable amount; "this dish could use a touch of garlic" mite, soupcon, tinge, jot, speck, pinch, touch small indefinite amount, small indefinite quantity - an indefinite quantity that is below average size or magnitude snuff - a pinch of smokeless tobacco inhaled at a single time
	4.	hint - a just detectable amount; "he speaks French with a trace of an accent" trace, suggestion small indefinite amount, small indefinite quantity - an indefinite quantity that is below average size or magnitude spark - a small but noticeable trace of some quality that might become stronger; "a spark of interest"; "a spark of decency"
	5.	hint - an indication of potential opportunity; "he got a tip on the stock market"; "a good lead for a job" confidential information, steer, tip, wind, lead counseling, counselling, guidance, counsel, direction - something that provides direction or advice as to a decision or course of action
Verb	1.	hint - drop a hint; intimate by a hint suggest intimate, adumbrate, insinuate - give to understand; "I insinuated that I did not like his wife" clue in - provide someone with a clue; "Can you clue me in?" convey - make known; pass on, of information; "She conveyed the message to me" allude, advert, touch - make a more or less disguised reference to; "He alluded to the problem but did not mention it"

hint

noun

1. clue, mention, suggestion, implication, indication, reminder, tip-off, pointer, allusion, innuendo, inkling, intimation, insinuation, word to the wise I'd dropped a hint about having an exhibition of his work.

2. (often plural) advice, help, tip(s), suggestion(s), pointer(s) I'm hoping to get some fashion hints.

3. trace, touch, suggestion, taste, breath, dash, whisper, suspicion, tinge, whiff, speck, undertone, soupçon (French) I glanced at her and saw no hint of irony on her face.

verb

1. (sometimes with at) suggest, mention, indicate, imply, intimate, tip off, let it be known, insinuate, allude to the fact, tip the wink (informal) The President hinted he might make some changes in the government.

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

hint

noun

1. A subtle quality underlying or felt to underlie a situation, action, or person:

implication, inkling, suspicion, undercurrent, undertone.

2. A subtle pointing out:

clue, cue, intimation, suggestion.

3. A slight amount or indication:

breath, dash, ghost, hair, intimation, semblance, shade, shadow, soupçon, streak, suggestion, suspicion, taste, tinge, touch, trace, whiff, whisper.

Informal: whisker.

verb

1. To convey an idea by indirect, subtle means:

imply, insinuate, intimate, suggest.

Idiom: drop a hint.

2. To try to obtain something, usually by subtleness and cunning:

angle, fish.

Translations

إقْتراح مفيدتَلمِيحتَلْميح، إشاره خَفِيَّهكميّه قليله،إشارة خفيفهيُلَمِّحُ إلَى

naznačitnáznakodstínradanarážet

antydeantydningprajrådtip

andeuten Andeutung Anflug Fingerzeig Hinweis

υπαινιγμός υπαινίσσομαι

insinuación insinuar indicación indirecta indicio

vihjatavihje

soupçon suggérer allusion conseil indice

nagovijestitinagovještaj

célozgatcélzáscsekély nyoma vminekútmutatás

ábending, ráîgefa í skynvísbendingvottur, ögn

suggerimento suggerire accennare alludere allusione

ヒントほのめかす

암시하다힌트

padaryti užuominąsuprasti užuominą

dot mājienudrusciņakripatiņamājiensnorādījums

een hint geven hint

hint hinte ymt ymte noe om antydning

podpowiedź podpowiedzieć

dar uma dica dica

намек намёк намекать

namignamigniti

antydavink

การบอกใบ้บอกใบ้

imaima etmekimada bulunmak tavsiyeüstü kapalı söylemek

ám chỉ

暗示点滴线索微小的

hint

[hɪnt]

A. N

1. (= suggestion) → indirecta f, insinuación f; (= advice) → consejo m
hints for purchasers → consejos mpl a los compradores
hints on maintenance → instrucciones fpl para la manutención
broad hint → indicación f inconfundible
to drop a hint → soltar or tirar una indirecta
to drop a hint that → insinuar que ...
give me a hint → dame una idea
to take a hint → captar una indirecta
take a hint from me → permite que te dé un consejo
to take the hint (unspoken) → tomar algo a corazón; (spoken) → darse por aludido

2. (= trace) → señal f, indicio m
without the least hint of → sin la menor señal de
with just a hint of garlic → con un ligerísimo sabor a ajo
with a hint of irony → con un dejo de ironía

B. VT → dar a entender, insinuar
he hinted that I had a good chance of getting the job → insinuó que tenía muchas posibilidades de conseguir el trabajo

C. VI → soltar indirectas

hint at VI + PREP → referirse indirectamente a, hacer alusión a
what are you hinting at? → ¿qué estás insinuando?

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

hint

[ˈhɪnt]

(= allusion) → allusion f
to drop a hint → faire une allusion
to give a hint that ... (= suggest that) → laisser entendre que ...
to give a strong hint that ... → laisser clairement entendre que ...
The Minister gave a strong hint that the government had changed its mind → Le ministre a laissé clairement entendre que le gouvernement avait changé d'avis.
give me a hint (= clue) → mettez-moi sur la voie, donnez-moi une indication
to take the hint → comprendre l'allusion
He took the hint and left her alone → Il comprit l'allusion et la laissa tranquille.
He can't take a hint → Il est incapable de comprendre une allusion.
I can take a hint!
BUT L'allusion ne m'a pas échappé !.

(= advice) → conseil m
handy hints → conseils pratiques

(= small amount, trace) [flavour, colour] → touche f; [sarcasm, irony] → touche f, trace f
I glanced at her and saw no hint of irony on her face → Je la regardai mais ne décelai aucune trace d'ironie sur son visage.
a hint of a smile → un soupçon de sourire

vt
to hint (that) ... (= suggest) → laisser entendre que ...
He hinted that I had a good chance of getting the job → Il m'a laissé entendre que j'avais de bonnes chances d'obtenir ce poste.

vi
to hint at the possibility of sth [person] → évoquer la possibilité de qch, évoquer l'éventualité de qch
The government are hinting at the possibility of a referendum → Le gouvernement évoque la possibilité d'un référendum.
What are you hinting at? → Qu'est-ce que vous voulez dire par là ?

hint

(= intimation, suggestion) → Andeutung f, → Hinweis m; a strong hint → ein deutlicher Hinweis; a subtle hint → ein zarter Wink; to give a/no hint of something → etw ahnen lassen or andeuten/nicht ahnen lassen or andeuten; to give or drop somebody a hint → jdm einen Wink geben, jdm gegenüber eine Andeutung machen; he was given a gentle hint about attention to detail → man hat ihm leise angedeutet or den leisen Wink gegeben, auf Details zu achten; to throw out or drop a hint → eine Andeutung machen, eine Bemerkung fallen lassen; to know how to take a hint → einen Wink verstehen; OK, I can take a hint → schon recht, ich verstehe or ich habe den Wink mit dem Zaunpfahl verstanden (inf); I’ve almost run out of this perfume, hint, hint → ich habe fast nichts mehr von dem Parfüm, hörst du?

(= trace) → Spur f; a hint of garlic → eine Spur Knoblauch; a hint of irony → ein Hauch m → von Spott; with just a hint of sadness in his smile → mit einem leichten Anflug von Traurigkeit in seinem Lächeln; with the hint of a smile → mit dem Anflug eines Lächelns; not a hint of emotion → keinerlei Gefühl; a hint of desperation → ein Anflug m → von Verzweiflung; at the first hint of trouble → beim ersten Zeichen von Ärger; there was no hint of apology in his voice → seine Stimme klang überhaupt nicht entschuldigend

(= tip, piece of advice) → Tipp m; hints for travellers (Brit) or travelers (US) → Reisetipps pl; I’ll give you a hint, the answer has two words → ich gebe dir einen Tipp or Hinweis, die Antwort besteht aus zwei Wörtern

vt → andeuten (to gegenüber); what are you hinting? → was wollen Sie damit sagen or andeuten?; he hinted strongly that … → er gab deutlich zu verstehen, dass …

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

hint

[hɪnt]

1. n (suggestion) → allusione f, accenno; (advice) → consiglio
hints on do-it-yourself → consigli pratici per il fai-da-te
a gentle hint → una velata allusione
to give sb a broad hint → far capire chiaramente a qn
to drop a hint → lasciar capire
to take the hint → capire l'antifona
with a hint of irony/sadness → con una punta d'ironia/tristezza
give me a hint (clue) → dammi almeno un'idea, dammi un'indicazione

2. vt to hint (to sb) that ... → lasciar capire (a qn) che...

hint at vi + prep → accennare a, alludere a, fare allusione a
just what are you hinting at? → cosa vuoi insinuare?

hint

(hint) noun

1. a statement that passes on information without giving it openly or directly. He didn't actually say he wanted more money, but he dropped a hint.

2. a helpful suggestion. I can give you some useful gardening hints.

3. a very small amount; a slight impression. There was a hint of fear in his voice.

verb

to (try to) pass on information without stating it openly or directly. He hinted that he would like more money; He hinted at possible changes.

take a/the hint

to understand a hint and act on it. I keep making jokes to my secretary about her coming to work late every day, but she never takes the hint.

hint

→ تَلمِيح, يُلَمِّحُ إلَى naznačit, náznak antyde, praj andeuten, Andeutung υπαινιγμός, υπαινίσσομαι insinuación, insinuar vihjata, vihje indice, laisser entendre nagovijestiti, nagovještaj suggerimento, suggerire ヒント, ほのめかす 암시하다, 힌트 een hint geven, hint hint, hinte podpowiedź, podpowiedzieć dar uma dica, dica намек, намекать antyda, vink การบอกใบ้, บอกใบ้ ima, imada bulunmak ám chỉ 暗示

hint

n. insinuación; indicación.

References in classic literature ?

For, not to hint of this: that it is an inference from certain canonic teachings, that while some natural enjoyments here shall have no children born to them for the other world, but, on the contrary, shall be followed by the joy-childlessness of all hell's despair; whereas, some guilty mortal miseries shall still fertilely beget to themselves an eternally progressive progeny of griefs beyond the grave; not at all to hint of this, there still seems an inequality in the deeper analysis of the thing.

View in context

When the elder Osborne gave what he called "a hint," there was no possibility for the most obtuse to mistake his meaning.

View in context

Mr Shepherd, a civil, cautious lawyer, who, whatever might be his hold or his views on Sir Walter, would rather have the disagreeable prompted by anybody else, excused himself from offering the slightest hint, and only begged leave to recommend an implicit reference to the excellent judgement of Lady Russell, from whose known good sense he fully expected to have just such resolute measures advised as he meant to see finally adopted.

View in context

As it was, however, she only hazarded a hint, and the hint was lost.

View in context

Nothing of her ever comes to light - no grating, no lifebuoy, no piece of boat or branded oar - to give a hint of the place and date of her sudden end.

View in context

In telegraphic sentences, half swallowed at the ends, They hint a matter's inwardness--and there the matter ends.

View in context

"The rocks will soon crack the shell," was the Crow's answer; and the Eagle, taking the hint, let fall the Tortoise on a sharp rock, and the two birds made a hearty meal of the Tortoise.

View in context

At the same time, I will not positively answer for my having never dropt a hint, because I know I do sometimes pop out a thing before I am aware.

View in context

"Ralph has been absolutely dumb about it but he did just give us a hint that he had a little surprise in store for the submarines.

View in context

'True,' said Ralph, emphatically; 'but you have still the power to advise; to state the reasons for and against; to hint a wish.'

View in context

Along that wilderness of glass - No swellings tell that winds may be Upon some far-off happier sea - No heavings hint that winds have been On seas less hideously serene.

View in context

Russian authors are still fonder of telling us that from the commencement of the campaign a Scythian war plan was adopted to lure Napoleon into the depths of Russia, and this plan some of them attribute to Pfuel, others to a certain Frenchman, others to Toll, and others again to Alexander himself- pointing to notes, projects, and letters which contain hints of such a line of action.