Adjective

Indirect' messages permit communicative contacts when,
without them, the alternatives would be total inhibition, si-
lence, and solitude on the one hand, or, on the other, com-
municative behavior that is direct, offensive, and hence
forbidden. This is a painful choice. In actual practice, neither
alternative is likely to result in the gratification of personal or
sexual needs. In this dilemma, ' indirect communications pro-
vide a useful compromise. As an early move in the dating
game, the young man might invite the young woman to dinner
or to the movies. These communications are polyvalent: both
the invitation and the response to it have several "levels" of
meaning. One is the level of the overt message—that is,
whether they will have dinner together, go to a movie, and so
forth. Another, more covert, level pertains to the question of
sexual activity: acceptance of the dinner invitation implies
that sexual overtures might perhaps follow. Conversely, rejec-
tion of the invitation means not only refusal of companionship
for dinner but also of the possibility of further sexual explora-
tion. There may be still other levels of meaning. For example,
acceptance of the dinner invitation may be interpreted as a
sign of personal or sexual worth and hence grounds for
increased self-esteem, whereas its rejection may mean the
opposite and generate feelings of worthlessness.

Adjective

The Bible and its teachings helped form the basis for the Founding Fathers' abiding belief in the inalienable rights of the individual, rights which they found implicit in the Bible's teachings of the inherent worth and dignity of each individual.

He is not only a zealous advocate for pusilanimous and passive obedience, but for the most implicit faith in the dictatorial mandates of power.

In his woolly fleece I cling implicit .