To imply something means to suggest it without stating it directly. When your teacher asks if you've finished your homework and you say, “Well, I worked really hard on it,” you're implying that maybe you didn't quite finish. You didn't say the words “I didn't finish,” but your answer hints at that meaning.

Implying is different from stating something outright. If someone says, “It's getting late,” they might be implying that it's time to go home, even though they didn't say those exact words. When dark clouds gather and your mom says, “Looks like the weather's changing,” she's implying it might rain soon.

Implying is also different from inferring. When you imply, you're the one hinting at something, but when you infer, you're figuring out what someone else implied. If your friend says their math test was “interesting,” you might infer (conclude) from their tone that it was actually quite difficult.

Writers use implication constantly. When a character in a story slams a door, the author implies that the character is angry without writing, “The character was angry.”