intimation

[ in-tuh-mey-shuhn ]

noun

1. the act of intimating, or making known indirectly.
2. a hint; suggestion:

   The death of his father was his first intimation of mortality.

Word History and Origins

Origin of intimation¹

First recorded in 1425–75; from French, from Late Latin intimātiōn-, stem of intimātiō, equivalent to intimāt(us), past participle of intimāre “to announce, make known” + -iō -ion ( def ); intimate ²( def )

Example Sentences

Lithwick: Mike Podhorzer made the good point, when Loper Bright came down, that there is this intimation that this is a huge power shift away from federal agencies, away from Congress and into the lap of the court—but when the courts grab power away from the regulatory agencies, the big winner isn’t just the courts.

From Slate

That offered the first intimation of the defense strategy: presenting as commonplace actions that the prosecutors have deemed criminal.

From Seattle Times

This brought an intimation of disaster.

From New York Times

The research paper on which Ladapo based his intimation that the vaccines breach the FDA’s DNA contamination standard is self-refuting.

From Los Angeles Times

An apple is tucked beneath the open fingers of her hand, and her head is tossed back in a death that summons up an intimation of exhausted sexual ecstasy.

From Los Angeles Times