sig|na|ture

sig|na|ture «SIHG nuh chuhr, -chur», noun, adjective.

–n.

1. a) a person's name written by himself: »

His signature was signed at the bottom of the letter in a bright green ink.

SYNONYM(S): autograph. b) the act of writing one's name, especially authenticating a document by doing so.

2. a set of signs, usually placed at the beginning of a staff immediately after the clef, to show the pitch, key, and time of a piece of music; key signature or time signature.

3. Printing, Bookbinding. a) a sheet folded together to form a unit of a book; section. A signature often consists of from 4 to 64 different pages printed on a single sheet. b) a letter or number on such a sheet to show how it is to be folded; signature mark.

4. music, sound effects, or announcement, used to identify a particular radio or television program; theme.

5. Pharmacy. the part of a prescription that is to be copied on the label, giving directions for taking the medicine.

6. Nuclear Physics. a characteristic track of bubbles or sparks made by a subatomic particle in a bubble or spark chamber, by means of which it may be identified.

7. Figurative. any characteristic or distictive mark of identification: »

The…seismic “signatures” of different earthquakes can be deciphered only after information is accumulated for many years (Robert W. Decker).

–adj.

1. serving as a characteristic example or distinctive identification: »

Ohno…in one of his signature performances is dressed in a thrift-shop gown and hat (New York Times).

2. promoting or exemplifying something as a person or a company: »

Italian designer Romeo Gigli's signature perfume…is being introduced at Neiman Marcus this weekend (Atlanta Constitution).

╂[< Late Latin signātūra marking (of sheep) < Latin sīgnum sign]