hint

n.

1. A slight indication or intimation: wanted to avoid any hint of scandal.
2. 1. A brief or indirect suggestion; a tip: stock-trading hints.
   2. 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.
To indicate or make known in an indirect manner.

v.intr.
To give a hint: wouldn't hint at the true purpose of the meeting. See synonyms at suggest.

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

hinter hint'er n.

Instructions used to ensure that a font displays properly at small point sizes. When fonts are scaled from a common algorithm, serifs, accents and various lines in small fonts may not line up properly with the pixel grid on screen. Hinting applies rules to specific characters; for example, a hint would ensure that both vertical lines in an H have the same thickness or that the sides of the "v" in the middle of an M are uniformly shaped. See scalable font and font smoothing.

Download Computer Desktop Encyclopedia to your iPhone/iTouch

noun

1. A subtle quality underlying or felt to underlie a situation, action, or person: implication, inkling, suspicion, undercurrent, undertone. See show/hide, suggest.
2. A subtle pointing out: clue, cue, intimation, suggestion. See knowledge/ignorance, suggest.
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. See big/small/amount, show/hide.

verb

1. To convey an idea by indirect, subtle means: imply, insinuate, intimate², suggest. Idioms: drop a hint. See show/hide, suggest.
2. To try to obtain something, usually by subtleness and cunning: angle¹, fish. See ask/answer.

IN BRIEF: A suggestion, usually given in an indirect way.

How many times it thundered before Franklin took the hint! How many apples fell on Newton's head before he took the hint! Nature is always hinting at us. It hints over and over again. And suddenly we take the hint. — Robert Frost (1874-1963)

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

Dansk (Danish)
n. - vink, antydning, tip
v. tr. - antyde, insinuere
v. intr. - hentyde til

idioms:

• take a hint    forstå en halvkvædet vise

Nederlands (Dutch)
hint, wenk, aanduiding, zweem, zinspeling, laten doorschemeren, opperen, zinspelen, doen vermoeden

Français (French)
n. - indication, allusion, pointe (d'épice, d'aromates), touche (une couleur), (fig) ébauche (sourire), soupçon (de dégoût, d'ironie), trace (d'émotion, de crainte), pointe (d'accent), idée, renseignement, tuyau
v. tr. - laisser entendre que
v. intr. - faire des sous-entendus

idioms:

• take a hint    saisir l'allusion, comprendre

Deutsch (German)
v. - andeuten
n. - Tip, Hinweis

idioms:

• take a hint    einen Wink verstehen

Ελληνική (Greek)
v. - υπαινίσσομαι, υπονοώ, κάνω νύξη
n. - υπαινιγμός, νύξη, ίχνος, υπόνοια, υποψία, υπόδειξη, συμβουλή

idioms:

• drop a hint    (καθομ.) υπαινίσσομαι, πετώ σπόντα
• take a hint    καταλαβαίνω τον υπαινιγμό

Italiano (Italian)
insinuare, accennare, cenno, allusione

idioms:

• take a hint    capire al volo

Português (Portuguese)
v. - sugerir
n. - sugestão (f)

idioms:

• take a hint    perceber uma sugestão e assim agir

Русский (Russian)
намек, совет, очень маленькое количество, давать совет, намекать

idioms:

• take a hint    понять намек

Español (Spanish)
n. - indicación, consejo, aviso, indirecta, insinuación
v. tr. - insinuar, indicar veladamente, dar a entender
v. intr. - indicar veladamente, hacer una insinuación

idioms:

• take a hint    aprovechar un consejo, darse por aludido

Svenska (Swedish)
v. - antyda, syfta
n. - vink, gnutta

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
暗示, 提示, 示意, 作暗示

idioms:

• take a hint    领会暗示

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 暗示, 提示
v. tr. - 暗示, 示意
v. intr. - 作暗示, 示意

idioms:

• take a hint    領會暗示

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 힌트, 암시, 기색, 미량
v. tr. - 넌지시 말하다, 암시하다
v. intr. - 넌지시 말하다, 암시하다, 빗대어 말하다

idioms:

• take a hint    알아차리다, 눈치 채다

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - ヒント, かすかなしるし, わずかな量, 有益な助言, 微量
v. - それとなく言う, ほのめかす

idioms:

• take a hint    感づく, 気を利かす

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(فعل) يلمح, يلمع إلى (الاسم) إلماع, تلميح, إشارة خفيه, ذرة, أثر, مقدار ضئيل‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮רמז, סימן קל, עצה‬
v. tr. - ‮רמז‬
v. intr. - ‮רמז, יעץ‬

If you are unable to view some languages clearly, click here.

To select your translation preferences click here.