indicate

The word "indicate" means to show or demonstrate. As a teacher, I use indicate fairly often in videos and in lessons when explaining the function of verbs and adjectives:

• The verb "be" indicates the verb tense in this sentence: Dinner is served at 6:00. (This sentence is in the present tense as indicated by the verb "be": is.

Here are some more examples:

• The bill indicates that we owe more money this month than last month.
• All the facts are indicating that this man is guilty.
• His chart indicates that sales for the company are improving.

The noun form is "indication."

• These sales figures are an indication of strong growth.
• The test result is an indication that your cholesterol level is too high.

Published on November 29, 2011