/ ˈmiːnɪŋ; NAmE / noun , adjective
■ noun
OF SOUND / WORD / SIGN
1.
meaning (of sth) [ U , C ] the thing or idea that a sound, word, sign, etc. represents :
What's the meaning of this word?
Words often have several meanings.
'Honesty'? He doesn't know the meaning of the word !
OF WHAT SB SAYS / DOES
2.
[ U , C ] the things or ideas that sb wishes to communicate to you by what they say or do :
I don't quite get your meaning (= understand what you mean to say) .
What's the meaning of this? I explicitly told you not to leave the room.
OF FEELING / EXPERIENCE
3.
[ U ] the real importance of a feeling or experience :
With Anna he learned the meaning of love.
OF BOOK / PAINTING
4.
[ U , C ] the ideas that a writer, artist, etc. wishes to communicate through a book, painting, etc. :
several layers of meaning
There are, of course, deeper meanings in the poem.
SENSE OF PURPOSE
5.
[ U ] the quality or sense of purpose that makes you feel that your life is valuable :
Her life seemed to have lost all meaning.
Having a child gave new meaning to their lives.
■ adjective
[ usually before noun ] = meaningful (2)
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WORD ORIGIN
late Middle English : verbal noun from mean (verb).