2
a
: having or likely to have influence or effect : important
a significant piece of legislation
also
: of a noticeably or measurably large amount
a significant number of layoffs
producing significant profits
b
: probably caused by something other than mere chance
statistically significant correlation between vitamin deficiency and disease
Synonyms
Example Sentences
Historians of ancient gender have seen this as crucially significant. Women in antiquity were by definition so disempowered that the authority of a new female ruler could only be captured by representing her in the guise of a man. Or so the argument goes.
—
Mary Beard, New York Review of Books, 12 Feb. 2009
While Congress will take a significant role in designing new regulation and is not likely to rubber-stamp the administration’s proposals, momentum is strong for the creation of comprehensive financial reform.
—Marc I. Seltzer et al., Commonweal, 19 June 2009
A new study on women and the media from the University of Missouri-Columbia shows that overweight women and women with eating disorders are not the only ones negatively affected by unrealistic advertisements (as previous studies have indicated). After viewing images of models, women of all sizes reported a significant decrease in satisfaction with their weight, hair, physical shape and sexual attractiveness.
—Ms., Summer 2007
One of [Charles] Darwin’s most extraordinary qualities was his ability to recognize when a scientific question could not be answered because of the limitations of the science of his day. He knew, for instance, that during his lifetime, no significant progress would be made on the question of how life began.
—Amy Stewart, Wilson Quarterly, Winter 2004
A significant number of customers complained about the service.
He won a significant amount of money.
There is a significant difference in prices between the two stores.
The study found a statistically significant decrease in symptoms in patients who had taken the drug.
a significant event in the history of our nation
Fish is a significant part of their diet.
It is significant that she never mentioned him.
He gave us a significant wink.
See More
Recent Examples on the Web
The possibility of a spring game being an inter-squad scrimmage has been bandied about for years, but has gained significant traction this offseason after Division II approved a proposal for its football teams to scrimmage four-year schools starting in the spring of 2024.
—oregonlive, 13 Apr. 2023
The South, where more than half of the nation’s Black population resides, has seen significant labor, delivery and hospital closures throughout its rural communities.
—Nada Hassanein, USA TODAY, 12 Apr. 2023
The man accused of fatally shooting a child and wounding two others in a domestic violence incident had been experiencing significant tax problems with the IRS, which filed two tax liens against him in recent years.
—Jacob Beltran, San Antonio Express-News, 12 Apr. 2023
Scott has already shown the ability to attract significant money.
—Meg Kinnard, Fortune, 12 Apr. 2023
The report says reasserting those environmental rules would have significant and challenging regulations on energy providers and the nation’s economy.
—J.d. Davidson | The Center Square, Washington Examiner, 12 Apr. 2023
This is a significant step in helping millions of people — particularly those who are young and on the lower end of the wage scale — who rely on having a good credit score to get an apartment or an affordable loan.
—Michelle Singletary, Washington Post, 12 Apr. 2023
This a big win for Arizonans and a significant shift in the tech industry, signaling that our efforts to make the Valley a microchip manufacturing hub are working.
—From Staff Reports, The Arizona Republic, 12 Apr. 2023
There will be significant betting placed at the track and at sportsbooks around the world and online once again this year.
—Ryan Black, The Courier-Journal, 12 Apr. 2023
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These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word ‘significant.’ Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Latin significant-, significans, present participle of significare to signify
First Known Use
1579, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Time Traveler
The first known use of significant was
in 1579
Dictionary Entries Near significant
Cite this Entry
“Significant.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/significant. Accessed 14 Apr. 2023.
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14 Apr 2023
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Merriam-Webster unabridged
- significant
-
adjective
1) значительный, важный, существенный; знаменательный
2) многозначительный; выразительный
3) значимый (о суффиксе и т. п.)
Syn:
grave, important, momentous, serious, vital, weighty
Ant:
insignificant, marginal, trivial, unimportant
* * *
(a) важный; значительный; репрезентативный
* * *
(много)значительный, важный
* * *
[sig’nif·i·cant || sɪg’nɪfɪkənt]
знаменательный, многозначительный; важный, существенный, значительный, значимый; выразительный, показательный* * *
важен
важный
внушителен
внушительный
внятен
внятный
выдающийся
выразителен
выразительный
достопримечательный
знаменательный
значимый
значителен
значительный
многозначен
многозначителен
многозначительный
многозначный
назидательный
наставительный
немалый
нравоучительный
означающее
отчетлив
отчетливый
показательный
поучителен
поучительный
существенный
явственный
* * *
1. сущ.
1) знак
2) лингв. означающее
2.
прил.
1) значительный
2) многозначительный
Новый англо-русский словарь.
2013.
Смотреть что такое «significant» в других словарях:
-
Significant — Sig*nif i*cant, a. [L. significans, antis, p. pr. of significare. See {Signify}.] 1. Fitted or designed to signify or make known somethingl having a meaning; standing as a sign or token; expressive or suggestive; as, a significant word or sound;… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
-
significant — 1570s, from L. significant , stem of significans, prp. of significare (see SIGNIFY (Cf. signify)). Earlier in the same sense was significative (c.1400). Related: Significantly. Significant other (n.) attested by 1961, in psychology, the most… … Etymology dictionary
-
significant — [adj1] telling, meaningful cogent, compelling, convincing, denoting, eloquent, expressing, expressive, facund, forceful, heavy, important, indicative, knowing, meaning, momentous, powerful, pregnant, representative, rich, sententious, serious,… … New thesaurus
-
significant — [sig nif′əkənt] adj. [L significans, prp. of significare, to SIGNIFY] 1. a) having or expressing a meaning b) full of meaning 2. important; momentous 3. having or conveying a special or hidden meaning; suggestive … English World dictionary
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Significant — Sig*nif i*cant, n. That which has significance; a sign; a token; a symbol. Wordsworth. [1913 Webster] In dumb significants proclaim your thoughts. Shak. [1913 Webster] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
-
significant — index central (essential), consequential (substantial), considerable, constructive (creative), critical ( … Law dictionary
-
significant — *expressive, meaningful, pregnant, eloquent, sententious Analogous words: cogent, telling, convincing, compelling, *valid, sound: forcible, forceful, *powerful: important, momentous, weighty (see corresponding nouns at IMPORTANCE) … New Dictionary of Synonyms
-
significant — ► ADJECTIVE 1) extensive or important enough to merit attention. 2) having an unstated meaning; indicative of something. DERIVATIVES significantly adverb … English terms dictionary
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significant — 01. I have noticed a [significant] improvement in Teddy s attitude since you had a talk with him. 02. I wonder what the [significance] of the snake is on the Mexican flag. 03. Mahatma Gandhi once said that whatever one does will be… … Grammatical examples in English
-
significant — sig|nif|i|cant W1S3 [sıgˈnıfıkənt] adj [Date: 1500 1600; : Latin; Origin: , present participle of significare; SIGNIFY] 1.) having an important effect or influence, especially on what will happen in the future ≠ ↑insignificant ▪ His most… … Dictionary of contemporary English
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significant — adjective 1 having an important effect or influence, especially on what will happen in the future: His most significant political achievement was the abolition of the death penalty. | Please inform us if there are any significant changes in your… … Longman dictionary of contemporary English
English[edit]
Etymology[edit]
From Latin significans, present participle of significare, from signum (“sign”) + ficare (“do, make”), variant of facere.
Pronunciation[edit]
- (UK) IPA(key): /sɪɡˈnɪf.ɪ.kənt/
- (US) IPA(key): /sɪɡˈnɪf.ə.kənt/, /sɪɡˈnɪf.ə.ɡənt/
Adjective[edit]
significant (comparative more significant, superlative most significant)
- Signifying something; carrying meaning.
- Synonym: meaningful
-
a significant word or sound
-
a significant look
-
- It was well said of Plotinus, that the stars were significant, but not efficient.
-
1856, Charles Dickens; Wilkie Collins, chapter III, in The Wreck of the Golden Mary, part two, page 99:
-
As evening came on, it grew prematurely dark and cloudy; while the waves acquired that dull indigo tint so significant of ugly weather.
-
- Having a covert or hidden meaning.
- Having a noticeable or major effect.
- Synonym: notable
-
That was a significant step in the right direction.
-
The First World War was a significant event.
-
2015, Shane R. Reeves; David Wallace, “The Combatant Status of the “Little Green Men” and Other Participants in the Ukraine Conflict”, in International Law Studies, US Naval War College[1], volume 91, number 361, Stockton Center for the Study of International Law, page 393:
-
The “little green men”—faces covered, wearing unmarked olive uniforms, speaking Russian and using Russian weapons—have played a significant role in both the occupation of Crimea and the civil war in eastern Ukraine.196
-
- Reasonably large in number or amount.
- (statistics) Having a low probability of occurring by chance (for example, having high correlation and thus likely to be related).
Synonyms[edit]
- important
Antonyms[edit]
- insignificant
- ignorable
- negligible
- slight
[edit]
- significance
- significand
- significant other
- signify
Translations[edit]
signifying something; carrying meaning
- Bulgarian: изрази́телен (bg) (izrazítelen)
- Esperanto: signifa
- Finnish: merkitsevä (fi)
- Greek:
- Ancient: σημαντικός (sēmantikós)
- Hungarian: jelentős (hu)
- Icelandic: marktækur
- Italian: significativo (it), eloquente (it)
- Kurdish:
- Northern Kurdish: watedar (ku)
- Latin: significans
- Latvian: nozīmīgs
- Plautdietsch: wichtich
- Romanian: semnificativ (ro)
- Russian: зна́чимый (ru) (znáčimyj)
- Sanskrit: आर्थिक (sa) (ārthika)
- Spanish: significativo (es)
- Tagalog: makahulugan
having noticeable effect
- Arabic: هَامّ (hāmm)
- Armenian: էական (hy) (ēakan)
- Belarusian: зна́чны (znáčny), ва́жны (vážny)
- Bulgarian: съще́ствен (bg) (sǎštéstven), значи́телен (bg) (značítelen)
- Catalan: significatiu (ca)
- Chinese:
- Mandarin: 重要 (zh) (zhòngyào), 有意義／有意义 (yǒu yìyì)
- Czech: významný (cs), důležitý (cs)
- Danish: signifikant
- Dutch: voelbaar (nl), waarneembaar (nl), beduidend (nl), significant (nl), veelbetekenend (nl), betekenisvol (nl)
- Finnish: merkittävä (fi), merkityksellinen (fi)
- French: significatif (fr)
- Georgian: მნიშვნელოვანი (mnišvnelovani)
- German: signifikant (de), bedeutend (de)
- Hebrew: משמעותי (mashma’uti), ממשי (mamashi)
- Hungarian: jelentős (hu)
- Interlingua: significante
- Italian: significativo (it), epocale, rimarchevole (it), notevole (it)
- Japanese: 重要な (ja) (じゅうような, jūyō na), 著しい (ja) (いちじるしい, ichijirushii)
- Korean: 중요(重要)하다 (ko) (jung’yohada), 상당(相當)하다 (ko) (sangdanghada)
- Kurdish:
- Northern Kurdish: giring (ku)
- Latin: ponderōsus, significāns
- Latvian: redzams, ievērojams
- Macedonian: значаен (značaen)
- Maori: tāpua
- Old English: please add this translation if you can
- Persian: please add this translation if you can
- Polish: znaczny (pl), znaczący (pl)
- Portuguese: significativo (pt)
- Romanian: semnificant (ro), important (ro), semnificativ (ro)
- Russian: значи́тельный (ru) (značítelʹnyj), суще́ственный (ru) (suščéstvennyj)
- Serbo-Croatian:
- Cyrillic: зна̏ча̄јан
- Roman: znȁčājan (sh)
- Slovak: významný, dôležitý (sk), značný, signifikantný (sk)
- Slovene: pomemben
- Spanish: importante (es), significativo (es)
- Swedish: signifikant (sv), betydelsefullt (sv), betydande (sv)
- Turkish: önemli (tr), anlamlı (tr), manalı (tr), kayda değer (tr)
- Ukrainian: значни́й (značnýj), істо́тний (istótnyj), суттє́вий (suttjévyj)
- Vietnamese: quan trọng (vi)
statistics: having a low probability of occurring by chance
Noun[edit]
significant (plural significants)
- That which has significance; a sign; a token; a symbol.
-
1591 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The First Part of Henry the Sixt”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act II, scene iv]:
-
In dumb significants proclaim your thoughts.
-
- a. 1850, William Wordsworth, The Egyptian Maid
- And in my glass significants there are
-
References[edit]
- significant in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
Catalan[edit]
Verb[edit]
significant
- present participle of significar
Latin[edit]
Verb[edit]
significant
- third-person plural present active indicative of significō
значительный, существенный, значимый, знак, символ, указание
прилагательное ↓
- знаменательный, важный
significant in its consequences [in its results] — имеющий важные последствия [результаты] 
July 4, 1776 is a significant date for Americans — 4 июля 1776 года — знаменательная дата для американцев
- показательный, показывающий
a gesture significant of consent — кивок, показывающий /выражающий/ согласие
perhaps her glance was significant — возможно, она хотела что-то сказать взглядом
- существенный
a significant change — значительная /существенная/ перемена
- многозначительный
- лингв. значимый, несущий значение (об аффиксе и т. п.)
- мат. значащий, значимый
существительное
- знак, символ; указание
- лингв. означающее
Мои примеры
Словосочетания
a significant event in the history of our nation — значительное событие в истории нашего народа
a significant pullback in the stock market — значительный откат на фондовом рынке
significant date — знаменательная дата
major / significant event — важное событие
meaningful, significant glance — многозначительный взгляд
significant achievement — важное достижение
to exercise a significant influence — оказывать существенное влияние
to play a significant part — играть важную роль
significant look — многозначительный взгляд
significant range — область значимости
significant figure — значащая цифра
significant experiment — достоверный опыт
Примеры с переводом
Fish is a significant part of their diet.
Рыба составляет значительную часть их рациона.
He gave me a significant look.
Он многозначительно посмотрел на меня.
A significant number of customers complained about the service.
На обслуживание пожаловалось значительное количество покупателей.
He gave us a significant wink.
Он многозначительно подмигнул нам.
He won a significant amount of money.
Он выиграл значительную сумму денег.
It was significant to note that the story did not appear in the newspapers.
Важно отметить, что эта история не появилась в газетах.
The energy expenditure was significant.
Энергетические затраты были значительными.
ещё 23 примера свернуть
Примеры, ожидающие перевода
…over time, her petty thefts aggregated a significant shortfall in the company’s books… 
Для того чтобы добавить вариант перевода, кликните по иконке ☰, напротив примера.
Возможные однокоренные слова
insignificant — незначительный, ничтожный, несущественный, маловажный, невзрачный, пустяковый
significantly — существенно, знаменательно
- Top Definitions
- Synonyms
- Quiz
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- When To Use
- Examples
- British
This shows grade level based on the word’s complexity.
[ sig-nif-i-kuhnt ]
/ sɪgˈnɪf ɪ kənt /
This shows grade level based on the word’s complexity.
adjective
important and deserving of attention; of consequence: Their advice played a significant role in saving my marriage.
relatively large in amount or quantity: a significant decrease in revenue.
having or expressing a meaning; indicative: a significant symbol of royalty.
having a special, secret, or disguised meaning; suggestive: a significant wink.
Statistics. of or relating to observations that are unlikely to occur by chance and that therefore indicate a systematic cause: Memory training produced a statistically significant improvement in group performance.
noun
something significant; a sign.
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Origin of significant
First recorded in 1565–75; from Latin significant- (stem of significāns ), present participle of the verbsignificāre “to indicate, denote”; see signify, -ant
OTHER WORDS FROM significant
sig·nif·i·cant·ly, adverbnon·sig·nif·i·cant, adjectivesu·per·sig·nif·i·cant, adjectiveun·sig·nif·i·cant, adjective
Words nearby significant
signifiant, significance, significance level, significance test, significancy, significant, significant digits, significant figures, significantly, significant other, significant symbol
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
WHEN TO USE
What are other ways to say significant?
The adjective significant describes things that are important, indicative of something, or suggestive of a hidden secret meaning. Do you know when to use significant, expressive, meaningful, and suggestive? Find out on Thesaurus.com.
Words related to significant
compelling, important, momentous, powerful, serious, symbolic, big, consequential, considerable, meaningful, notable, noteworthy, substantial, vital, cogent, convincing, denoting, eloquent, expressing, expressive
How to use significant in a sentence
-
Health officials said a “significant” number of residents — including teachers — who did not fit into those categories have been turned away from county sites.
-
The “NYPD Files” has resulted in significant moves toward change.
-
This NFL offseason will be one of significant quarterback movement.
-
Reversing that trend will require people to make significant lifestyle changes, which can be difficult, Braha said.
-
Maldonado said she’ll also be on the lookout for any cases of Guillain-Barré syndrome, which is often a concern when it comes to vaccines, but she noted that no significant increases in cases were seen in any of the adult trials.
-
And in either case, “the significant benefit from allowing Wi-Fi hotspots outweighs these concerns.”
-
This “Sixth Migration” of massive human migration to Texas is the larger story of the book, and it is a significant story.
-
The town, known in Arabic as Ayn al-Arab, is so significant to ISIS that the group calls it Ayn al-Islam.
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Occasionally, guys and girls admitted outright they were looking for a potential significant other.
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It was the first significant violence directed toward police after weeks of demonstrations across the city.
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In dramatic interpretation the voice is a much more significant feature relatively than is the detail of gesture in pantomime.
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And in his heart the name of the poem repeated itself with significant insistence: Unwelcome!
-
The finely granular variety is the least significant, and is found when the epithelium is only moderately affected.
-
By all the sounded consonants we have—“Inhuman Civil War;” the latter shorter, more significant, and more easily remembered.
-
An odd and somewhat unromantic name, but very significant of the circumstances under which she was found.
British Dictionary definitions for significant
adjective
having or expressing a meaning; indicative
having a covert or implied meaning; suggestive
important, notable, or momentous
statistics of or relating to a difference between a result derived from a hypothesis and its observed value that is too large to be attributed to chance and that therefore tends to refute the hypothesis
Derived forms of significant
significantly, adverb
Word Origin for significant
C16: from Latin significāre to signify
Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012