Do you know the definition of indeed? This article will provide you with all of the information you need on the word indeed, including its definition, usage, word origin, and more!
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Kevin
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September 3, 2021
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What does the word indeed mean?
According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary as well as other sources like the American Heritage Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language and Collins English Dictionary, the word indeed is an adverb that means without any question, in reality, or as a matter of fact. This is often used as an interjection to express some irony, disbelief, or surprise. Indeed has two syllables – in-deed, and the pronunciation of indeed is in-ˈdēd. You may also see this word in the idioms a friend in need is a friend indeed.
According to Definitions, Indeed is also a proper noun. Indeed is a company founded in 2004 that gives job seekers free access to job boards and thousands of job listings and company websites. This company was founded by Paul Forster and Rony Kahan and has additional offices in Austin, Texas, Dublin, Ireland, London, England, San Mateo, California, New York and Stamford, Connecticut that house over 900 employees. This American worldwide employment website is a subsidiary of Japan’s Recruit Co. Ltd. It passed Mondet in October 2010 to become the highest-traffic job website in the United States. This is equivalent to a social media platform like Facebook or Twitter, but is focused on job searching. It has a single-topic search engine, and is also an example of vertical search.
Many different languages also contain words that mean indeed. You may notice that many of these words look and sound similar to each other. These are called cognates, which is when two words look, sound, and mean similar things across languages. These cognates are often formed when two words have the same root or language of origin. This list of translations for the word indeed is provided by Word Sense.
- Latvian: patiesībā, īstenībā, patiešām, faktiski
- Hebrew: אכן (akhén)
- Danish: sandelig, sandhed, søreme
- Polish: naprawdę, w rzeczy samej, zaiste
- Scottish Gaelic: gu dearbh
- Finnish: todella, tosiaan, oikeasti, toden totta
- Greek: πράγματι
- Ido: fakte
- Latin: quidem
- Romanian: într-adevăr
- Macedonian: навистина (navístina), баш (baš)
- French: certainement, vraiment, en effet
- Dutch: inderdaad, daadwerkelijk
- Russian: в самом деле (v sámom déle), действительно (dejstvítel’no), правда (právda), точно (tóchno), конечно (konéčno), несомненно (nesomnénno)
- Czech: vskutku
- German: in der Tat
- Portuguese: de fato, realmente
- Yup’ik: ilumun
- Italian: infatti
- Mandarin: 的確, 的确 (díquè), 事實上, 事实上 (shìshíshàng), 確實, 确实 (quèshí)
- Maori: iara
- Spanish: de hecho, realmente, efectivamente, verdaderamente, en realidad, de veras, sin duda, en verdad, en efecto
What is the origin of the word indeed?
According to Etymonline, the adverb indeed has been used since the year 1600 as a contraction of the prepositional phrase in dede in Middle English, meaning in fact, truth, or reality. This is an early c14 term from the Old English dæd which means a doing or an action. This later formed the related word deed. These can be compared to the West Frisian yndied, Dutch inderdaad and German in der Tat. Indeed has been used as in interjection since the 1590s (c16), to express surprise or disgust since 1834 (19c) and the emphatic forms yes indeedy and no indeedy have been used since 1856 in American English. These come from the Proto-Indo-European root dhe.
How can the word indeed be used in a sentence?
The word indeed can be used in many different sentences in the English language. Using words in a sentence is a great way to memorize their definitions. You can also try making flashcards and quizzes to test your knowledge. Try using this word in a sentence today! Below are a couple examples to get you started.
She was an amazing soccer player, indeed. She had a variety of senses and qualities that helped her success – excellent vision, she was a great runner, and she had great instincts. She got a soccer scholarship to Princeton University.
He thought his preferred candidate would indeed win the November election, but as he watched the quantities of ballots roll in, he saw his world come crumbling down around him. How would he survive the incongruity of the next four years?
What are synonyms and antonyms of indeed?
There are many different words that one can use in place of the word indeed. These are called synonyms, which are words and phrases that have the same meaning as another word or phrase. Synonyms are a very useful tool to know because they are an easy way to expand your vocabulary and they can help you avoid repeating yourself. This list of related words for the word indeed is provided by Thesaurus.
- undeniably
- strictly
- verily
- very much
- naturally
- really
- much
- undoubtedly
- even
- truly
- to be sure
- of course
- in point of fact
- well
- certainly
- for real
- sure thing
- easily
- veritably
- doubtlessly
- absolutely
- amen
- very
- surely
- positively
- actually
- in truth
There are also numerous words that have the opposite meaning as the word indeed. These opposite words are called antonyms. Antonyms are another quick and easy way to expand your English language vocabulary. This list of antonyms is also provided by Thesaurus.
- ambiguously
- hesitatingly
- skeptically
- doubtingly
- undecidedly
- distrustfully
- doubtfully
- uncertainly
- questionably
- askance
- suspiciously
- problematically
- dubiously
- irresolutely
- tentatively
- unsettingly
Overall, the word indeed means an expression of surprise or a confirmation that some statement is correct or accurate. It can also be used as an expression of skepticism or serious doubt, or to indicate a concession or admission, as well with an interrogative intonation to obtain confirmation.
Sources:
- indeed: meaning, origin, translation | Word Sense
- indeed | Origin and meaning of indeed | Online Etymology Dictionary
- INDEED Synonyms: 30 Synonyms & Antonyms for INDEED | Thesaurus
- DOUBTFULLY Synonyms: 14 Synonyms & Antonyms for DOUBTFULLY | Thesaurus
- Indeed | Definition of Indeed | Merriam-Webster
- What does indeed mean? | Definitions
