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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
Examples of inkling in a Sentence
Dominique Fluker, Essence, 23 Oct. 2024
An inkling of Worldcoin began in 2019 when Altman began exploring identity verification that could be used in universal basic income schemes.
—Lauren Goode, WIRED, 17 Oct. 2024
Meanwhile, the interior marks a big step up from lower-spec Rangers, with sportier seats that further contribute to the inkling that Ford purposefully tried to outpace Chevrolet’s Colorado.
—Michael Teo Van Runkle, Forbes, 20 Oct. 2024
By now almost everybody has at least an inkling that Jelly Roll has become one of the biggest superstars of country music in the past two years.
—Chris Willman, Variety, 12 Oct. 2024
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Cite this Entry
“Inkling.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/inkling. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.
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