signal phrase
signal phrase noun: an indication that something is a paraphrase or direct quote.
Noun
signal phrase (plural signal phrases)
- An indication that something is a paraphrase or direct quote.
- "Smith suggests that..." and "In Smith's words..." are both signal phrases.
- Introduce the material being cited with a signal phrase, usually the authors name, and use a parenthetical citation stating the page number of the sentence.1993, Sheila Cooper, Rosemary Patton, Ergo: Thinking Critically and Writing Logically, page 220
- A phrase that signals a particular meaning or stance.
- To identify an opinion, look for signal phrases such as “I think,” “I consider,” “I'm convinced,” “I guess,” “I believe,” or “I feel.”1996, Mary Ann Christensen, Interpreting Literature & the Arts, page 76
Forms of signal phrase
| plural | signal phrases |
|---|
Origin of signal phrase
From signal + phrase.
Questions about signal phrase
- What does signal phrase mean?
- Signal phrase means an indication that something is a paraphrase or direct quote.
- What part of speech is signal phrase?
- Signal phrase is a noun.
- What is the plural of signal phrase?
- The plural of signal phrase is signal phrases.
Words near signal phrase in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: signal phrase (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
Cite this entry: “signal phrase.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/signal_phrase. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.