Signpost Meaning
/ˈsaɪnˌpoʊst/Definition, CEFR level B1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
Listen pronunciation
Definition
nounA post bearing a sign that gives information on directions.
nounA word or phrase within a clue that serves as an indicator, rather than being fodder.
Sentence Examples
Tom walked into the signpost.
A poster was stapled onto a signpost.
The signpost had a green arrow pointing towards the park.
CEFR Practice Quiz
At the fork, there was a ____ indicating the direction to the lake.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The hikers looked for a ____ to confirm they were still on the correct trail.
Word Origin & History
From sign + post.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"Dozens of signposts have been stolen, forcing the local authorities to put up the sign at a 2m height and embed it in theft-resistant concrete when putting up replacements."
— 2020 November 26, Philip Oltermann in Berlin, “Fugging hell: tired of mockery, Austrian village changes name”, in The Guardian, archived from the original on 15 Jan 2021:
"In the first example — Dance revolutionised Burma — you know the middle word is the signpost as revolutionised is too long to be the fodder (or letters to scramble). […] And bang, out jumps RUMBA."
— 2012, David Astle, Puzzled: Secrets and clues from a life in words:
"Bede, never one to shrink from a challenge, focused his energies not only onto calculating Easter but also onto describing why the maths mattered as much as the result. In this, his elevated rhetoric is balanced by a very human enthusiasm — it's hard not to love a writer who signposts his core hypotheses with phrases such as 'now to gut the bowels of this question!'"
— 2013 August 8, Charlotte Mulcare, “The lost mathematicians: Numbers in the (not so) dark ages”, in plus.maths.org, retrieved 08 Sep 2013:
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CEFR Practice Quiz
At the fork, there was a ____ indicating the direction to the lake.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The hikers looked for a ____ to confirm they were still on the correct trail.