indicator

noun

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in·di·ca·tor | \ ˈin-də-ˌkā-tər

Definition of indicator

1 : one that indicates: such as

a : an index hand (as on a dial) : pointer

b(1) : gauge sense 2b, dial sense 4a

(2) : an instrument for automatically making a diagram that indicates the pressure in and volume of the working fluid of an engine throughout the cycle

2 : any of a group of statistical values (such as level of employment) that taken together give an indication of the health of the economy

3a : a substance (such as litmus) used to show visually (as by change of color) the condition of a solution with respect to the presence of a particular material (such as a free acid or alkali)

b : tracer sense 4b

4 : an organism or ecological community so strictly associated with particular environmental conditions that its presence is indicative of the existence of these conditions

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Synonyms for indicator

Synonyms

Examples of indicator in a Sentence

Economic indicators suggest that prices will go up. a control panel with various indicator lights

Recent Examples on the Web Violence in the home is more an indicator of whether there'll be violence in the street or whether a whole country will go to war against another country than water, oil, land, all the things that violence is often attributed to. — Alia E. Dastagir, USA TODAY, "Gloria Steinem reflects on her decades-long fight for equality, the violence women are facing," 25 Mar. 2021 Use an indicator with fly tackle, but don’t expect casts to be pretty. — Bill May, baltimoresun.com/maryland/carroll, "Bill May: Worm fishing for trout, and more | OUTDOORS COMMENTARY," 20 Mar. 2021 An orange or green indicator appears in the iPhone’s top left corner every time an app uses the microphone or the camera. — Chris Smith, BGR, "Android 12 adds a great privacy feature iPhone owners will recognize," 19 Mar. 2021 Considered an indicator of investor confidence, the ten-year Treasury bond yield has risen rapidly by about 0.7 percent since the beginning of the year. — Jon Hartley, National Review, "For Bond Yields It’s Mostly the Reopening Economy (Not Inflation) for Now," 19 Mar. 2021 The rise in investment is an early indicator that the state’s burgeoning status as a premier destination for investors and entrepreneurs is coming to fruition. — Marc Vartabedian, WSJ, "Venture-Capital Funding Gets Bigger in Texas," 17 Mar. 2021 In other cases, the pandemic has become an immediate indicator of compatibility. — Arit John, Star Tribune, "The business of making a match," 12 Mar. 2021 Though Geekbench is a synthetic benchmark, the relatively strong single-thread performance of the Snapdragon 7c is somewhat of an indicator for the overall user experience. — Marco Chiappetta, Forbes, "First Snapdragon 7c Chromebook Analysis Shows Class-Leading Performance And Battery Life," 9 Mar. 2021 Still, Kousky says that the new findings are an important indicator of just how much the cost of flood damage could grow around the country as the climate changes, which the cost of insurance in any single year does not capture. — Drew Kann. Graphics By Renée Rigdon, CNN, "Flood risk is growing for US homeowners due to climate change. Current insurance rates greatly underestimate the threat, a new report finds," 22 Feb. 2021

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'indicator.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Last Updated

1 Apr 2021

Cite this Entry

“Indicator.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/indicator. Accessed 11 Apr. 2021.

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More Definitions for indicator

indicator

noun

English Language Learners Definition of indicator

: a sign that shows the condition or existence of something

: a pointer or light that shows the state or condition of something

: a device that shows a measurement

See the full definition for indicator in the English Language Learners Dictionary

indicator

noun

in·di·ca·tor | \ ˈin-də-ˌkā-tər

Kids Definition of indicator

1 : a sign that shows or suggests the condition or existence of something

2 : a pointer on a dial or scale

3 : dial entry 1 sense 3, gauge

indicator

noun

in·di·ca·tor | \ ˈin-də-ˌkāt-ər

Medical Definition of indicator

: a substance (as a dye) used to show visually (as by a change in color) the condition of a solution with respect to the presence of a particular material (as a free acid or alkali) litmus and phenolphthalein are acid-base indicators

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