English Reference

Word

indicate

Phoneticsin·di·cate

US/ˈɪndəˌkeɪt/

UK/ˈɪndɪkˌeɪt/

Definitions

01to show or suggest

B1

v. to show that something exists or is likely to be true.

v. to serve as a sign, symptom, or evidence of something. Often used with a 'that' clause or a direct object.

“Recent studies indicate that eating more vegetables can improve your health.”

“The preliminary data indicate a significant correlation between sleep quality and cognitive performance in older adults.”

Academic

Usage

Commonly followed by a 'that' clause in academic writing.

Antonyms

02to point out

B1

v. to point to something or draw attention to it.

v. to point out or direct attention to something specifically.

“Please indicate which of these books you would like to borrow.”

“The map uses small red icons to indicate the locations of historical landmarks throughout the city center.”

Antonyms

03medical symptoms

B2 · Medicine

v. to be a sign of a specific illness or medical condition.

v. to manifest as a symptom or to suggest a particular treatment is necessary.

“A high fever can indicate that the body is fighting an infection.”

“The patient's persistent cough and fatigue may indicate an underlying respiratory condition that requires further testing.”

Technical

Synonyms

Antonyms

contraindicate

04to signal while driving

B1

v. to use the lights on your car to show you are turning.

v. to use a vehicle's directional signals to inform other drivers of an intended change in direction.

“You should always indicate before you turn left at the junction.”

“The driver failed to indicate before changing lanes, nearly causing a collision with the motorcyclist behind him.”

British English

Teaching tip

In American English, 'signal' is much more common than 'indicate' for this specific action.

Synonyms

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin indicātus, perfect passive participle of indicō (“to point out, indicate”) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix)), from in- (“in, to”) + dicō (“to declare, (originally) to point”). See also diction and index.

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Collocations

indicates freeanalysis indicateclearly indicatedata indicateestimate indicatefinally indicatefinding indicateindicate by

Word family

Domain

Medicine

This entry

Level
B1 · Intermediate
Frequency
Common
Updated

Scan code

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English Reference