inkling

noun

in·​kling ˈiŋ-kliŋ 

1

: a slight knowledge or vague notion

had not the faintest inkling of what it was all about

—H. W. Carter

2

: a slight indication or suggestion : hint, clue

there was no path—no inkling even of a track

—New Yorker

Did you know?

This may come as a surprise, but inkling has not a drop to do with ink, whether of squid, tattoo, or any other variety. Originating in English in the early 16th century, inkling comes instead from Middle English yngkiling, meaning “whisper or mention,” and perhaps further back from the verb inclen, meaning “to hint at.” An early sense of the word meant “a faint perceptible sound or undertone” or “rumor,” but now people usually use the word to refer to a vague notion someone has (“had an inkling they would be there”), or to a hint of something present (“a conversation with not even an inkling of anger”). One related word you might not have heard of is the rare verb inkle, a back-formation of inkling that in some British English dialects can mean “to utter or communicate in an undertone or whisper, to hint, give a hint of” or “to have an idea or notion of.” (Inkle is also a noun referring to “a colored linen tape or braid woven on a very narrow loom and used for trimming” but etymologists don’t have an inkling of where that inkle came from.)

Synonyms

• clue
• cue
• hint
• indication
• intimation
• lead
• suggestion

Examples of inkling in a Sentence

did not give the slightest inkling that he was planning to quit

Recent Examples on the Web

Money that was meant to go toward her presidential run was instead spent on the campaign’s of old political grandees looking to preserve any inkling of their past power. —Alex González Ormerod, TIME, 30 May 2024

Each inkling of Brown’s onslaught seemingly responded to each whiff of Huskies momentum. —Sam Cohn, Baltimore Sun, 30 Apr. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English yngkiling whisper, mention, probably from inclen to hint at; akin to Old English inca suspicion

First Known Use

1513, in the meaning defined at sense 2

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Kids Definition

inkling

noun

in·​kling ˈiŋ-kliŋ 

: a vague notion : hint

didn't have an inkling of what it all meant