Definition:
A subtle or indirect observation about a person or thing, usually of a critical or disparaging nature; an insinuation. See also: double entendre.
Etymology:
From the Latin, "by hinting"Examples and Observations:
- "When public men indulge themselves in abuse, when they deny others a fair trial, when they resort to innuendo and insinuation, to libel, scandal, and suspicion, then our democratic society is outraged, and democracy is baffled."
(J. William Fulbright) - "Sexual come-ons are a classic example. 'Would you like to come up and see my etchings?' has been recognized as a double entendre for so long that by 1939, James Thurber could draw a cartoon of a hapless man in an apartment lobby saying to his date, 'You wait here, and I'll bring the etchings down.'
"The veiled threat also has a stereotype: the Mafia wiseguy offering protection with the soft sell, 'Nice store you got there. Would be a real shame if something happened to it.' Traffic cops sometimes face not-so-innocent questions like, 'Gee, Officer, is there some way I could pay the fine right here?'"
(Steven Pinker, "Words Don't Mean What They Mean," Time magazine, September 6, 2007) - "Some seem to believe that we should negotiate with the terrorists and radicals, as if some ingenious argument will persuade them they have been wrong all along. We have heard this foolish delusion before."
(President George W. Bush, speech to the members of the Knesset in Jerusalem, May 15, 2008) - "Bush was speaking of appeasement against those who would negotiate with terrorists. The White House spokeswoman, with a straight face, claimed the reference was not to Sen. Barack Obama."
(John Mashek, "Bush, Obama, and the Hitler Card," U.S. News, May 16, 2008) - "What you don’t deserve is another election that’s governed by fear, and innuendo, and division."
(Barack Obama, speech on June 3, 2008)
Pronunciation: in-YOO-en-doe
