information

noun in·for·ma·tion \ ˌin-fər-ˈmā-shən \

|Updated on: 11 Jun 2018

Tip: Synonym Guide

Examples: information in a Sentence

Definition of information

1 : the communication or reception of knowledge or intelligence

2 a (1) : knowledge obtained from investigation, study, or instruction

(2) : intelligence, news

(3) : facts, data

b : the attribute inherent in and communicated by one of two or more alternative sequences or arrangements of something (such as nucleotides in DNA or binary digits in a computer program) that produce specific effects

c (1) : a signal or character (as in a communication system or computer) representing data

(2) : something (such as a message, experimental data, or a picture) which justifies change in a construct (such as a plan or theory) that represents physical or mental experience or another construct

d : a quantitative measure of the content of information; specifically : a numerical quantity that measures the uncertainty in the outcome of an experiment to be performed

3 : the act of informing against a person

4 : a formal accusation of a crime made by a prosecuting officer as distinguished from an indictment presented by a grand jury

—

informational

play \ˌin-fər-ˈmā-shnəl, -shə-nᵊl\ adjective

—

informationally

adverb

See information defined for English-language learners

See information defined for kids

Examples of information in a Sentence

They're working to collect information about the early settlers in the region.
The pamphlet provides a lot of information on recent changes to the tax laws.
He gave the police false information about his background.
The conference will give us an opportunity to exchange information with other researchers.
We can't make a decision until we have more information.
The tests have not yet uncovered any new information.
I don't like having to reveal personal information when I fill in a job application.
He's accused of withholding useful information.
I couldn't remember his number so I had to call information.

Recent Examples of information from the Web

Based on the false information in the loan applications, mortgage lenders provided more than $21 million in financing to buy more than 100 properties, according to authorities.

— hannah fry, latimes.com, "Huntington Beach man sentenced to federal prison and ordered to pay $10 million for mortgage fraud," 8 June 2018
Minnesota head coach Adrian Heath rolled out a starting lineup against Cincinnati that, according to the MLS Players Union salary information, is pulling down more than $2.2 million in total compensation this season.

— patrick brennan, Cincinnati.com, "Minnesota United: Cincinnati 'is going to be an intimidating environment' in MLS," 8 June 2018
Most outlets that do—and the U.S. media is catching up to the British press in this respect—put the information at the bottom.

— josephine livingstone, The New Republic, "How not to screw up media coverage of suicides.," 8 June 2018
Cindy Harreld-DeWease, president of the Clear Lake Chamber of Commerce, helped with some of the information used for this quiz.

— yvette orozco, Houston Chronicle, "How well do you know Bay Area history?," 7 June 2018
An investigation commissioned by the team actually revealed Colangelo’s wife, Barbara, to be running the accounts leaking the most sensitive information, but the damage had already been done.

— rohan nadkarni, SI.com, "There Was No Way Bryan Colangelo Could Remain Employed in Philadelphia," 7 June 2018
Start by filling out the basic information required in the Common Application.

— gerald bradshaw, Post-Tribune, "Summer is a key time for research on what college to attend," 7 June 2018
At issue: whether BuzzFeed’s decision to publish the Trump dossier without first verifying its contents was justified because of government actions related to the information contained in it.

— warren richey, The Christian Science Monitor, "Controversial Trump-Russia 'dossier' sparks legal battle over press freedom," 7 June 2018
The information ruffled the feathers of residents, who questioned the validity of the survey given the lower-than-expected participation levels.

— erin hegarty, Naperville Sun, "Fifth Avenue development concepts still facing skepticism from community members," 6 June 2018

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

First Known Use of information

14th century

in the meaning defined at sense 2a

See Words from the same year

NEW! Time Traveler

information Synonyms

Synonyms

intelligence, item, news, story, tidings, word;

dope, lowdown, scoop, tidbit (also titbit), tip;

gossip, rumor, tale, tattle;

feedback;

disinformation, propaganda;

Other Telecommunications Terms

Ethernet, intercept

INFORMATION Defined for English Language Learners

information

noun

Definition of information for English Language Learners

: knowledge that you get about someone or something : facts or details about a subject
: a service that telephone users can call to find out the telephone number for a specified person or organization

INFORMATION Defined for Kids

information

noun in·for·ma·tion \ ˌin-fər-ˈmā-shən \

Definition of information for Students

: knowledge obtained from investigation, study, or instruction : facts or details about a subject

Synonym Discussion of information

information, knowledge, and learning mean what is or can be known. information may be used of a collection of facts gathered from many places.

- The book has a lot of information about baseball.

knowledge is used for facts and ideas acquired by study, observation, or experience.

- She has a knowledge of birds.

learning is used of knowledge acquired by long and careful study.

- The learning of a lifetime is in that book.

Law Dictionary

information

noun in·for·ma·tion

legal Definition of information

: an instrument containing a formal accusation of a crime that is issued by a prosecuting officer and that serves the same function as an indictment presented by a grand jury — compare complaint 2, indictment

Note: About half the states in the United States allow prosecutors to issue informations. The rest require indictment.