Main Entry: im·plic·it

Pronunciation: \im-ˈpli-sət\

Function: adjective

Etymology: Latin implicitus, past participle of implicare

Date: 1599

1 a : capable of being understood from something else though unexpressed : implied <an implicit assumption> b : involved in the nature or essence of something though not revealed, expressed, or developed : potential <a sculptor may see different figures implicit in a block of stone — John Dewey> c of a mathematical function : defined by an expression in which the dependent variable and the one or more independent variables are not separated on opposite sides of an equation — compare explicit 4
2 : being without doubt or reserve : unquestioning <an implicit trust>

— im·plic·it·ly adverb

— im·plic·it·ness noun