The meaning of what someone says or of something such as a book or film is the thoughts or ideas that are intended to be expressed by it. Unsure of the meaning of this remark, Ryle chose to remain silent = significance
That which is meant or intended; intent; purpose; aim; object; as, a mischievous meaning was apparent
That which is signified, whether by act lanquage; signification; sense; import; as, the meaning of a hint
emphasis If you mention something and say that someone doesn't know the meaning of the word, you are emphasizing that they have never experienced the thing mentioned or do not have the quality mentioned. Don't mention failure when Kevin is around. He doesn't know the meaning of the word. In philosophy and linguistics, the sense of a linguistic expression, sometimes understood in contrast to its referent. For example, the expressions "the morning star" and "the evening star" have different meanings, though their referent (Venus) is the same. Some expressions have meanings but no referents ("the present king of France") or referents but no meanings ("that"). The literal or conventional meaning of an expression may differ from what a speaker of that expression means by uttering it on a particular occasion; this is the case with similes, statements uttered ironically, and statements that convey various "conversational implicatures," as in the following examples: "She entered the house and shot him" implicates that she shot him in the house after she entered it, though this is not part of the sentence's literal meaning; "John has three sons" implicates that John has no more than three sons, though again the sentence does not literally say this. Other non-literal aspects of meaning include the potential for carrying out various "speech acts" (see speech act theory); e.g., uttered in the appropriate circumstances, the sentence "I christen thee the Joseph Stalin," constitutes the act of naming a ship, and the sentence "I am cold" constitutes a request to close the window. See also pragmatics; semantics
If an activity or action has meaning, it has a purpose and is worthwhile. Art has real meaning when it helps people to understand themselves. a challenge that gives meaning to life
it is often helpful to distinguish the Sinn (or meaning) of a word or expression from its Bedeutung (or reference) The two expressions ''Morning Star'' and ''Evening Star'' mean something quite different (as different as day and night or, at least, dawn and dusk); they, however, refer to the same planet: Venus
The meaning of a word, expression, or gesture is the thing or idea that it refers to or represents and which can be explained using other words. I hadn't a clue to the meaning of `activism' I became more aware of the symbols and their meanings
1 Referential meaning: Allusion to particular items of knowledge outside the film which the viewer is expected to recognize 2 Explicit meaning: Significance presented overtly, usually in language and often near the films beginning or end 3 Implicit meaning: Significance left tacit, for the viewer to discover upon analysis or reflection 4 Symptomatic meaning: Significance which the film divulges, often "against its will," by virtue of its historical or social context