1. (v.) To intend to show; to present a false appearance; as to purport oneself to be a dignitary\.

2. (n.) Design or tendency; meaning; import; tenor.

3. (n.) Disguise; covering.

academic acceptation affective meaning aim aim at allege aspire after aspire to avow be after bearing burden claim coloring connotation consequence core denotation design desire destine determine drift drive at effect essence extension force gist go for grammatical meaning harbor a design have every intention idea impact implication import intend intendment intension lexical meaning literal meaning matter mean meaning meat message ostensible overtone pertinence pith plan point postulated practical consequence presupposed pretend pretended pretext profess professed project propose protest too much purported purpose range of meaning real meaning reference referent relation relevance reputed resolve rumored scope semantic cluster semantic field sense significance significancy signification significatum signifie so-called span of meaning speculative spirit structural meaning substance sum sum and substance supposed suppositional suppositive suspected symbolic meaning tenor theoretical think thrust totality of associations transferred meaning unadorned meaning understanding undertone upshot value