# indicate

> English word · Verb · IPA /ˈɪndɪˌkeɪt/ · frequency rank #3,952

## Definitions
1. To point out; to discover; to direct to a knowledge of; to show; to make known.
2. To show or manifest by symptoms.
3. To point to as the proper remedies.
4. To signal in a vehicle the desire to turn right or left.
5. To investigate the condition or power of, as of steam engine, by means of an indicator.

## Etymology
Borrowed from Latin indicātus, perfect passive participle of indicō (“to point out, indicate”) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix)), from in- (“in, to”) + dicō (“to declare, (originally) to point”). See also diction and index.

## Easily confused with
- **indict** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/indicate-vs-indict)
- **intimate** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/indicate-vs-intimate)
- **indicated** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/indicate-vs-indicated)
- **indicates** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/indicate-vs-indicates)
- **indicator** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/indicate-vs-indicator)
- **intricate** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/indicate-vs-intricate)
- **indicative** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/indicate-vs-indicative)
- **indica** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/indica-vs-indicate)

## Common misspellings (11)
`idnicate`, `indciate`, `inddicate`, `indiacte`, `indicaet`, `indicatte`, `indiccate`, `indictae`, `inidcate`, `inndicate`, `nidicate`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/indicate