sign

sign
\ \ [13] Sign comes via Old French signe from Latin signummark’. It already had the meaning ‘mark denoting something’ in Latin, and it was in this sense that it entered English, gradually ousting the native word token. The verb sign goes back ultimately to the Latin derivative signāremark’. English acquired it in the 14th century, and first used it for ‘write one’s name’ in the 15th century. Other related forms in English include assign [14], consign [15], design, ensign [14], insignia [17], resign [14] (in which the prefix re- has the force of ‘un-’), sealwax impression, fastening’, signal, signatory [17], signature [16], signet [14], significant [16], and signify [13]. The ultimate source of Latin signum is uncertain. It was once assumed to go back to the Indo-European base *sek- ‘cut’ (source of English saw, section, etc), as if it denoted etymologically a ‘cut mark’, but now Indo-European *seq- ‘point out’, hence ‘say, tell’ (source of English say) is viewed as a more likely ancestor.
\ \ Cf.ASSIGN, CONSIGN, DESIGN, ENSIGN, INSIGNIA, RESIGN, SEAL, SIGNAL, SIGNATURE, SIGNIFICANT

Word origins - 2ed. . 2005.

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  • sign — [sīn] n. [ME signe < OFr < L signum, a mark, token, prob. < base of secare, to cut (see SAW1): orig. sense prob. “incised mark”] 1. something that indicates a fact, quality, etc.; indication; token [black as a sign of mourning] 2. a) a… …   English World dictionary

  • Sign — Sign, n. [F. signe, L. signum; cf. AS. segen, segn, a sign, standard, banner, also fr. L. signum. Cf. {Ensign}, {Resign}, {Seal} a stamp, {Signal}, {Signet}.] That by which anything is made known or represented; that which furnishes evidence; a… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

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  • Sign — Sign, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Signed}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Signing}.] [OE. seinen to bless, originally, to make the sign of the cross over; in this sense fr. ASS. segnian (from segn, n.), or OF. seignier, F. signer, to mark, to sign (in sense 3), fr. L …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • sign — vt 1: to affix a signature to: ratify or attest by hand or seal sign a bill into law; specif: to write or mark something (as a signature) on (a document) as an acknowledgment of one s intention to be bound by it 2: to assign or convey formally… …   Law dictionary

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  • sign in — {v.} To write your name on a special list or in a record book to show that you are present. * /Every worker must sign in when coming back to work./ * /Teachers go to the office and sign in each morning before going to their classrooms./ Contrast… …   Dictionary of American idioms

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