Main Entry: sign

Pronunciation: \ˈsīn\

Function: noun

1 : one of a set of gestures used to represent language
2 : an objective evidence of disease especially as observed and interpreted by the physician rather than by the patient or lay observer <narrow retinal vessels are a sign of arteriosclerosis>—see brudzinski sign, chvostek's sign, homans' sign, kernig sign, physical sign, placental sign, romberg's sign, tinel's sign, vital signs, von graefe's sign; compare symptom