. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
you have here. The definition of the word
will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition of
, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.
English
Two-aspect railway signal
Alternative forms
Etymology
From Old French segnal , seignal or Medieval Latin signāle ; noun use of the neuter of Late Latin signālis , from Latin signum ; verb use from 1805, as a shortened from signalize (1650s).
Pronunciation
Noun
signal (plural signals )
A sequence of states representing an encoded message in a communication channel.
Any variation of a quantity or change in an entity over time that conveys information upon detection.
A sign made to give notice of some occurrence, command, or danger, or to indicate the start of a concerted action.
1667 , John Milton , “Book V”, in Paradise Lost. , London: [Samuel Simmons ], , →OCLC ; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: , London: Basil Montagu Pickering , 1873 , →OCLC :All obeyed / The wonted signal and superior voice / Of this great potentate.
An on-off light, semaphore , or other device used to give an indication to another person.
( of a radio, TV, telephone, internet, etc. ) An electromagnetic action, normally a voltage that is a function of time, that conveys the information of the radio or TV program or of communication with another party.
My mobile phone can't get a signal in the railway station.
An action, change or process done to convey information and thus reduce uncertainty.
A token; an indication; a foreshadowing; a sign.
c. 1593 (date written), William Shakespeare , “The Tragedy of Richard the Third: ”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies (First Folio ), London: Isaac Iaggard , and Ed Blount , published 1623 , →OCLC , [Act V, scene iii]:The weary sun [ …] / Gives signal of a goodly day to-morrow.
1722 , Daniel Defoe , A Journal of the Plague Year :There was not the least signal of the calamity to be seen.
Useful information , as opposed to noise .
( computing , Unix) A simple interprocess communication used to notify a process or thread of an occurrence.
( biochemistry ) A signalling interaction between cells
Antonyms
( useful information ) : noise
Derived terms
Related terms
Translations
sign made to give notice
Albanian: sinjal (sq) m
Arabic: إِشَارَة f ( ʔišāra )
Armenian: ազդանշան (hy) ( azdanšan ) , ազդակ (hy) ( azdak )
Azerbaijani: siqnal
Belarusian: сігна́л m ( sihnál ) , знак (be) m ( znak )
Bengali: ইশারা (bn) ( iśara ) , সংকেত (bn) ( śoṅket )
Bulgarian: сигна́л (bg) m ( signál )
Burmese: လက္ခဏာ (my) ( lakhka.na )
Catalan: senyal (ca) m
Chinese:
Mandarin: 信號 / 信号 (zh) ( xìnhào )
Czech: znamení (cs) n , signál (cs) m
Danish: signal (da) n
Dutch: signaal (nl) n , sein (nl) n
Esperanto: signalo
Estonian: signaal (et)
Finnish: merkki (fi) , signaali (fi)
French: signal (fr) m
Galician: sinal (gl) m
Georgian: სიგნალი ( signali )
German: Signal (de) n
Greek: σήμα (el) n ( síma )
Hebrew: אוֹת (he) m ( ot ) , סִיגְנָל m ( signál )
Hindi: संकेत (hi) m ( saṅket ) , इशारा (hi) m ( iśārā )
Hungarian: jel (hu) , jelzés (hu) , jeladás (hu) , ( driving ) index (hu) , ( a tune ) szignál (hu)
Indonesian: isyarat (id) , anggai (id)
Italian: segnale (it) m
Japanese: 信号 (ja) ( しんごう, shingō ) , 合図 (ja) ( あいず, aizu )
Kazakh: сигнал ( signal )
Khmer: តម្រុយ (km) ( tɑmroy ) , សង្កេត (km) ( sɑngkeet ) , សញ្ញា (km) ( saññaa )
Korean: 신호(信號) (ko) ( sinho )
Kyrgyz: сигнал (ky) ( signal )
Lao: ສັນຍານ ( san nyān )
Latvian: signāls m
Lithuanian: signalas (lt) m
Macedonian: сигнал m ( signal )
Malay: isyarat (ms)
Mongolian:
Cyrillic: дохио (mn) ( doxio )
Mongolian: ᠳᠣᠬᠢᠶᠠ ( dokiy-a )
Norwegian:
Bokmål: signal n
Nynorsk: signal n
Ottoman Turkish: اشارت ( işaret )
Pashto: اشاره (ps) f ( ešārá ) , سيګنل m ( signál ) , زيګنال m ( zignãl )
Persian: سیگنال (fa) ( signâl ) , اشاره (fa) ( ešâre )
Polish: sygnał (pl) m
Portuguese: sinal (pt) m
Romanian: semnal (ro)
Russian: сигна́л (ru) m ( signál ) , знак (ru) m ( znak )
Serbo-Croatian:
Cyrillic: сѝгна̄л m
Roman: sìgnāl (sh) m
Slovak: znamenie n , signál m
Slovene: signal m
Spanish: señal (es) f
Swahili: ishara (sw)
Swedish: signal (sv) c
Tajik: ишора (tg) ( išora ) , ишорат ( išorat ) , сигнал ( signal )
Telugu: సంజ్ఞ (te) ( sañjña ) (1), సంకేతం (te) ( saṅkētaṁ ) (1, 2)
Thai: สัญญาณ (th) ( sǎn-yaan )
Turkish: sinyal (tr)
Turkmen: signal
Ukrainian: сигна́л m ( syhnál ) , знак m ( znak )
Urdu: اشاره m ( iśāra )
Uyghur: سىگنال ( signal )
Uzbek: signal (uz) , ishora (uz)
Vietnamese: tín hiệu (vi)
device to give indication
computing: simple interprocess communication
See also
Verb
signal (third-person singular simple present signals , present participle ( UK ) signalling or ( US ) signaling , simple past and past participle ( UK ) signalled or ( US ) signaled )
( transitive , intransitive ) To indicate ; to convey or communicate by a signal.
He whistled to signal that we should stop.
2024 February 7, Mel Holley, “Network News: LNER ditches Off-Peak for 70min semi-flexible fare”, in RAIL , number 1002 , page 6:It is the latest step towards an airline-style advance booking-only system, which rail users have denounced as signalling the end of affordable, immediate travel.
( transitive ) To communicate with (a person or system) by a signal.
Seeing the flames, he ran to the control room and signalled headquarters.
Derived terms
Translations
to indicate
Bulgarian: сигнализирам (bg) ( signaliziram )
Danish: give signal (da) , signalere
Finnish: viestittää (fi) , signaloida (fi) , opastaa (fi)
French: signaler (fr)
German: signalisieren (de)
Greek:
Ancient: σημειόω ( sēmeióō )
Hungarian: jelez (hu) , jelt ad , jelöl (hu) , indexel (hu)
Italian: segnalare (it) , indicare (it)
Lithuanian: signalizuoti
Maori: rota ( by using hands ) , rotarota ( by using hands ) , whakapua ( with smoke ) , hū ( with a call )
Russian: сигнализи́ровать (ru) ( signalizírovatʹ )
Sicilian: sincalijari , sinnari , nnicari
Spanish: señalar (es)
Adjective
signal (not comparable )
Standing above others in rank, importance, or achievement.
a signal exploit; a signal success; a signal act of benevolence
1671 , John Milton , “Samson Agonistes, .”, in Paradise Regain’d. A Poem. In IV Books. To which is Added, Samson Agonistes , London: J. M for John Starkey , →OCLC , page 27 :As ſignal now in low dejected ſtate, / As earſt in higheſt, behold him where he lies.
1866 , Herman Melville , Battle-Pieces and Aspects of the War , Supplement:But, setting this view aside, dishonorable would it be in the South were she willing to abandon to shame the memory of brave men who with signal personal disinterestedness warred in her behalf, though from motives, as we believe, so deplorably astray.
Synonyms
Related terms
Anagrams
Danish
Etymology
From Medieval Latin signale .
Pronunciation
Noun
signal n (singular definite signalet , plural indefinite signaler )
a signal
Declension
References
French
Etymology
Re-latinization of Old French segnal , from Medieval Latin signale , from Late Latin signālis , from Latin signum .
Pronunciation
Noun
signal m (plural signaux )
signal
1864 , Jules Verne, Voyage au centre de la Terre , sourced from :Nous verrons bien. C’est le mot du professeur, qui, après avoir baptisé cet îlot volcanique du nom de son neveu, donne le signal de rembarquement. "That is what we shall see." So says the Professor, who, having named this volcanic islet after his nephew, gives the signal to embark again.
Derived terms
Related terms
Descendants
Further reading
Anagrams
Norwegian Bokmål
Etymology
From Medieval Latin signale .
Noun
signal n (definite singular signalet , indefinite plural signal or signaler , definite plural signala or signalene )
a signal
Derived terms
References
Norwegian Nynorsk
Etymology
From Medieval Latin signale .
Noun
signal n (definite singular signalet , indefinite plural signal , definite plural signala )
a signal
Derived terms
References
Romanian
Etymology
Borrowed from French signal .
Noun
signal n (plural signale )
signal
Declension
Serbo-Croatian
Etymology
From German Signal , from Medieval Latin signale , from Latin signum .
Pronunciation
IPA (key ) : /sǐɡnaːl/
Hyphenation: sig‧nal
Noun
sìgnāl m (Cyrillic spelling сѝгна̄л )
signal
Declension
References
“signal ” in Hrvatski jezični portal
Swedish
Etymology
Derived from Latin signālis , from signum .
Pronunciation
Noun
signal c
a signal
Declension
Derived terms
Further reading
Anagrams
Vilamovian
Etymology
From Old French segnal , seignal or Medieval Latin signāle , noun use of the neuter of Late Latin signālis , from Latin signum .
Pronunciation
Noun
signal n (plural signale )
signal