inkling

in·kling

noun \ˈiŋ-kliŋ\

Definition of INKLING

1

: a slight indication or suggestion : hint, clue <there was no path—no inkling even of a track — New Yorker>

2

: a slight knowledge or vague notion <had not the faintest inkling of what it was all about — H. W. Carter>

Examples of INKLING

1. <did not give the slightest inkling that he was planning to quit>

Origin of INKLING

Middle English yngkiling whisper, mention, probably from inclen to hint at; akin to Old English inca suspicion

First Known Use: 1513

Related to INKLING

Synonyms

clue, cue, indication, hint, intimation, lead, suggestion

Related Words

breath, flicker, glimmer, glimpse, mention, scent, whiff, wind; hunch, idea, inspiration, notion; allusion, implication, inference, innuendo, insinuation; denotation, evidence, guidepost, key, mark, overtone, pointer, sign, signal, telltale, token; assistance, nod, prompt, tip, tip-off, wink; feeling, foreboding, intuition, premonition, presentiment, suspicion; augury, foreshadower, foretaste, harbinger, omen, portent, prefigurement, presage, symptom

Near Antonyms

answer, solution

Rhymes with INKLING

sprinkling, twinkling