imprint

plural imprints

1. An impression; the mark left behind by printing something or by pressing on something, or the figurative counterpart of such a mark.

   The day left an imprint in my mind.

   3 more examples

   Their footsteps left an imprint in the sand.

   The packaging requires an imprint on three of its sides.

   It was the moment everyone knew the Champions League trophy was on its way back to the Bernabéu and, once again, that the four-times Ballon d’Or winner had left his imprint on another final.

   2017 June 3, Daniel Taylor, “Real Madrid win Champions League as Cristiano Ronaldo double defeats Juve”, in The Guardian (London)

2. The name and details of a publisher or printer, as printed in a book etc.; (metonymic) the publisher, publishing house, or printer; their brand, or one of their subbrands.

   Near-synonyms: colophon, imprimatur

   2 more examples

   Each of the Big Five publishers has many imprints; for example, the imprints of Penguin Random House include Crown, DK, and Knopf Doubleday.

   From their Belmont Avenue address they issued such memorable titles as I Peddle Jazz, Camera Bait, Our Flesh Was Cheap, Lesbian Twins, and His Sex, His Problem under at least four different imprints—Saber, Fabian, Vega, and National Library Books.

   2001, Susan Stryker, Queer Pulp, page 19

   Synonyms: colophon, imprimatur

3. A distinctive marking, symbol, or logo.

   Near-synonyms: imprimatur, hallmark

   1 more example

   The shirts bore the company imprint on the right sleeve.

   Synonyms: imprimatur, hallmark

present singular third person imprints · participle present imprinting · participle past imprinted · past imprinted

1. To leave a print, impression, image, etc.

   For a fee, they can imprint the envelopes with a monogram.

   3 more examples

   For though a Child quickly aſſent to this Propoſition, That an Apple is not Fire; when, by familiar Acquaintance, he has got the Idea's of thoſe two different things diſtinctly imprinted on his Mind, and has learnt that the names Apple and Fire ſtand for them; yet it will be ſome years after, perhaps, before the ſame Child will aſſent to this Propoſition, That it is impoſſible for the ſame thing to be, and not to be.

   1689 (indicated as 1690), [John Locke], “No Innate Principles in the Mind”, in An Essay Concerning Humane Understanding. […], London: […] Eliz[abeth] Holt, for Thomas Basset, […], →OCLC, book I, § 23, page 12

   Him great in peace and wealth fair Deva knows; / For ſhe amidſt his ſpacious meadows flows; / Inclines her urn upon his fatten'd lands; / And ſees his num'rous herd imprint her ſands.

   1709, Matthew Prior, “Henry and Emma. […]”, in The Poetical Works of Matthew Prior […], volume I, London: […] W[illiam] Strahan, […], published 1779, →OCLC, page 259

   Nature imprints upon whate'er we ſee / That has a heart and life in it, be free; [...]

   1782, William Cowper, “Charity”, in Poems, London: […] J[oseph] Johnson, […], →OCLC, page 189

2. To learn something indelibly at a particular stage of life, such as who one's parents are.

   Baby birds are known for a propensity to imprint; they tend to imprint on whichever creatures they perceive to be their parents — including humans doing wildlife rescue!

   1 more example

   That is, by way of this initial imprinting the young animal becomes a socialized member of its species. Animals misimprinted to other species show a variety of abnormal social behaviors as adults.

   1977, Dorothy Rogers, Issues in child psychology, page 62

3. To mark a gene as being from a particular parent so that only one of the two copies of the gene is expressed.