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Bespeak vs Signify - What's the difference?

bespeak | signify | Related terms |

Bespeak is a related term of signify.


As verbs the difference between bespeak and signify

is that bespeak is (lb) to speak about; tell of; relate; discuss while signify is to give (something) a meaning or an importance.

As a noun bespeak

is a request for a specific performance; a benefit performance, by a patron.

bespeak

English

Verb

  • (lb) To speak about; tell of; relate; discuss.
  • *2006 , Janet Jaymes, Dirty Laundry: A Memoir :
  • *:But to bespeak of a love, heavily weighed upon a heart, toward someone opposing those sentiments encourages foolish and embarrassing repercussions he will never know about.
  • (lb) To speak for beforehand; engage in advance; make arrangements for; order or reserve in advance.
  • :
  • *Sir (Walter Scott) (1771-1832)
  • *:concluding, naturally, that to gratify his avarice was to bespeak his favour
  • (lb) To stipulate, solicit, ask for, or request, as in a favour.
  • :
  • To forbode; foretell.
  • To speak to; address.
  • *(John Dryden) (1631-1700)
  • *:He thus the queen bespoke .
  • (lb) To betoken; show; indicate; foretell; suggest.
  • :
  • *(Jonathan Swift) (1667–1745)
  • *:[They] bespoke dangersin order to scare the allies.
  • *(John Locke) (1632-1705)
  • *:When the abbot of St. Martin was born, he had so little the figure of a man that it bespoke him rather a monster.
  • *
  • *:This new-comer was a man who in any company would have seemed striking.He was smooth-faced, and his fresh skin and well-developed figure bespoke the man in good physical condition through active exercise, yet well content with the world's apportionment.
  • (lb) To speak up or out; exclaim; speak.

    • Derived terms

    * *

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • A request for a specific performance; a benefit performance, by a patron.
  • * 1839 , Charles Dickens,
    • "By the bye, I've been thinking of bringing out that piece of yours on her bespeak night."
    "When?", asked Nicholas.
    "The night of her bespeak'. Her benefit night. When her friends and patrons ' bespeak the play."
    "Oh! I understand", replied Nicholas.

    References

    (Webster 1913)

    Anagrams

    * ----

    signify

    English

    Verb

    (en-verb)
  • To give (something) a meaning or an importance.
  • To show one’s intentions with a sign etc.
  • * (rfdate) (William Shakespeare)
    • I'll to the king; and signify to him / That thus I have resign'd my charge to you.
  • * (rfdate) (Jonathan Swift)
    • The government should signify to the Protestants of Ireland that want of silver is not to be remedied.
  • To mean; to betoken.
  • * (rfdate) (William Shakespeare)
    • A tale / Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, / Signifying nothing.

    Synonyms

    * (l) * (l)