- to claim (to be a certain thing, etc) by manner or appearance, esp falsely
- (esp of speech or writing) to signify or imply
- meaning; significance
- purpose; object; intention
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
pur•port /v. pərˈpɔrt; n. ˈpɜrpɔrt/USA pronunciation
v. [~ + to + verb]
n. [uncountable]
pur•port•ed•ly, adv.: He was purportedly wealthy.See -port-.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026- to present, esp. deliberately, the appearance of being;
claim or pretend to be (something one is not):A man purporting to be the manager is calling.
n. [uncountable]
- the meaning or sense of something, as of a piece of writing or of what one says:the general purport of the message.
pur•port•ed•ly, adv.: He was purportedly wealthy.See -port-.
pur•port
(v. pər pôrt′, -pōrt′, pûr′pôrt, -pōrt;n. pûr′pôrt, -pōrt),USA pronunciation v.t.
n.
pur′port•less, adj.
- to present, esp. deliberately, the appearance of being;
profess or claim, often falsely:a document purporting to be official. - to convey to the mind as the meaning or thing intended;
express or imply.
n.
- the meaning, import, or sense:the main purport of your letter.
- purpose;
intention;
object:the main purport of their visit to France.
- Anglo-French, derivative of the verb, verbal
- Latin portāre); (noun, nominal) late Middle English
- Anglo-French purporter to convey, equivalent. to pur- pro-1 + porter to carry (
- (verb, verbal) late Middle English purporten 1375–1425
- 2. mean, intend, signify. 3. implication, drift, trend, gist. See meaning.
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
purport vb /pɜːˈpɔːt/ (transitive)
'purport' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):