signature

English Online Dictionary. What means signature‎? What does signature mean?

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Middle French signature, or from Medieval Latin signātūra, future active periphrastic of verb signāre (“to sign”) from signum (“sign”), + -tūra, feminine of -tūrus, future active periphrastic suffix. Displaced native Old English handseten (literally “hand setting”).

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈsɪɡnət͡ʃə(ɹ)/, /ˈsɪɡnɪt͡ʃə(ɹ)/
• (US) enPR: sĭg′nəchər, sĭg′nĭchər, IPA^(key): /ˈsɪɡnət͡ʃɚ/, /ˈsɪɡnɪt͡ʃɚ/
• (General Australian) IPA^(key): /ˈsɪɡnɪt͡ʃə(ɹ)/

Noun

signature (plural signatures)

2. A person's name, written by that person, used as identification or to signify approval of accompanying material, such as a legal contract.
3. An act of signing one's name; an act of producing a signature.
   • For more quotations using this term, see Citations:signature.
4. (medicine) The part of a doctor’s prescription containing directions for the patient.
5. (music) Signs on the stave indicating key and tempo, composed of the key signature and the time signature.
6. (printing) A group of four (or a multiple of four) sheets printed such that, when folded, they become a section of a book.
7. (computing) A pattern used for matching the identity of a virus, the parameter types of a method, etc.
8. (cryptography) Data attached to a message that guarantees that the message originated from its claimed source.
9. (figurative) A mark or sign of implication.
10. A dish that is characteristic of a particular chef.
11. (mathematics) A tuple specifying the sign of coefficients in any diagonal form of a quadratic form.
12. (medicine, obsolete) A resemblance between the external character of a disease and those of some physical agent, for instance, that existing between the red skin of scarlet fever and a red cloth; supposed to indicate this agent in the treatment of the disease.
13. (Internet) Text (or images, etc.) appended to a user's emails, newsgroup posts, forum posts, etc. as a way of adding a personal touch or including contact details.

    Synonyms: sig, siggy

Hyponyms

• biosignature

Derived terms

Translations

See also

• autograph

Adjective

signature (not generally comparable, comparative more signature, superlative most signature)

1. Distinctive, characteristic, indicative of identity.

   Synonym: iconic

Translations

References

• “signature”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.

Anagrams

• antisurge, gauntries, sautering

French

Etymology

From signer +‎ -ture; cf. Medieval Latin signatura.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /si.ɲa.tyʁ/

Noun

signature f (plural signatures)

1. signature (a person's name written in their own handwriting)

   désavouer sa signature

2. the act of signing

Related terms

• signer
• signataire

Further reading

• “signature”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

Latin

Participle

signātūre

1. vocative masculine singular of signātūrus