sign on

verb

|Updated on: 13 Jun 2018

Definition of sign on

intransitive verb

1 : to engage oneself by or as if by a signature

signed on to the new project

2 : to announce the start of broadcasting for the day

—

sign-on

play \ˈsī-ˌnȯn, -ˌnän\ noun

See sign on defined for kids

Recent Examples of sign on from the Web

John Zimmer, now Lyft’s president, signed on with the idea that putting more people into existing cars could help cities fight emissions and traffic, all at once.

— aarian marshall, WIRED, "Lyft Redesigns Its App—and Strategy—for the Age of Sharing," 7 June 2018
Biomedical researchers were shocked when the 2018 omnibus spending bill that Trump signed on March 23 contained an 8.8 percent raise for the NIH — about $3 billion, its largest in 15 years.

— bruce selcraig, San Antonio Express-News, "UT Health research given $24 million vote of confidence," 31 May 2018
Klum agrees, noting that since Simon joined the panel a few years ago, she’s seen an influx in musicians signing on, and talented ones at that.

— nicole pajer, Billboard, "Mel B & Heidi Klum Tease the Most 'Dangerous Season' of 'America's Got Talent' Yet," 28 May 2018
With nearly two dozen Republicans and most Democrats signing on, backers remain just short of the goal of 218 signatures to force action.

— carl hulse, New York Times, "Usually Reliable and Cooperative, Centrist House Republicans Rebel," 23 May 2018
Here’s a high-concept sci-fi show coming to Fox, with Ridley Scott and Matt Reeves signed on as executive producers.

— jacob kastrenakes, The Verge, "New trailers: Bohemian Rhapsody, Mission: Impossible - Fallout, and more," 19 May 2018
So clever reformists came up with an alternate route: passing state laws that would take effect only when it is guaranteed that enough other states have signed on to swing the outcome.

— benjamin hart, Daily Intelligencer, "Connecticut Joins Effort to Overturn Electoral College," 6 May 2018
But Bowyer said there was no effort to cajole or coerce women who did not respond to a request to sign on.

— stephen battaglio, latimes.com, "Former colleagues supporting NBC's Tom Brokaw say they're acting on their own," 2 May 2018
Palace chairman Steve Parish has been keen to see results from the academy sides for some time now, so his obvious delight at the 20-year-old's decision to sign on is understandable.

— SI.com, "Crystal Palace Starlet Aaron Wan-Bissaka Signs Contract Extension Until 2022," 19 Apr. 2018

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

First Known Use of sign on

1879

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

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See words that rhyme with sign on Nglish: Translation of sign on for Spanish speakers

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sign on

Definition of sign on

sign-on

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First Known Use of sign on

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