Etymologically
Log in

denote

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 31 October 2026 at 23:46. This address is a permanent link to this version.
Changes in this edit History

Pronunciation

  • UK: /dɪˈnəʊt/[1]
  • US: /dɪˈnoʊt/[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Middle French dénoter,[2][3][4][5] which the OED finds in Oresme in the 14th century, and directly borrowed from Latin dēnotō (“to mark out, point out”),[5][6][7][8] formed from dē- (“completely, thoroughly”) and notō (“to mark, note”),[2][9][7] from nota (“a mark”).[2][10][7] The Anglo-Norman denoter, to signify, show or interpret, is recorded from the 12th century.[11]

Earliest recorded meaning

To be the outward or visible sign of something: 1597, in Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet in the OED,[5] which Barnhart dates to 1592;[2] Merriam-Webster gives a first use of 1562 for the sense "to serve as an indication of".[3]

Semantic evolution

In the 17th century denote could also mean to write something down or describe it (1612–1697), and to mark out or distinguish by a sign (from 1646).[5] Johnson (1755) defined it as to mark or be a sign of, with the example of a quick pulse showing a fever.[12] From 1668 it was used of a word or symbol that stands for something.[5] In 1843 John Stuart Mill used it in logic for the relation of a name to the things it applies to, in contrast with connote.[5][13] Collins and Merriam-Webster also record the sense of a word's literal meaning, as against what it suggests.[14][3]

Timeline

  • 1562 – to serve as an indication of.[3] The OED's first quotation, from Shakespeare, is of 1597.[5]
  • 1612 – to note down, describe (obsolete by 1697).[5]
  • 1646 – to mark out, distinguish by a mark.[5]
  • 1668 – to stand for, as a symbol or name.[5]
  • 1843 – in logic, to designate or be the name of, in contrast to connote.[5][13]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To be a sign or symptom of; to indicate: Dark clouds often denote rain.[14][3][5]
  2. To stand for as a symbol or name: In the formula, x denotes the speed.[3][5]
  3. Of a word or expression, to have as its literal or direct meaning, as against what it connotes.[14][3]

Word family

  • denotable
  • denotive
  • denotement
  • denotation
  • denotative
  • undenoted

References

  1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  4. ^ Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  6. ^ Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  7. ^ a b c Stevenson, Angus, ed. (2010), Oxford Dictionary of English, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  8. ^ Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  9. ^ Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  10. ^ Skeat, Walter W. (1911), A Concise Etymological Dictionary of the English Language, new ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  11. ^ Anglo-Norman Dictionary (AND2), Aberystwyth University, anglo-norman.net (2nd ed., 2005–)
  12. ^ Johnson, Samuel (1755), A Dictionary of the English Language, London; 4th ed. 1773; Johnson's Dictionary Online, ed. Beth Rapp Young et al.
  13. ^ a b Weekley, Ernest (1921), An Etymological Dictionary of Modern English, London: John Murray
  14. ^ a b c Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins