- impression
- impression 1 Impression, impress, imprint, print, stamp are comparable when denoting the perceptible trace or traces left by pressure.Impression is the most widely applicable of these terms. It may be used with reference to a mark or trace or a series or combination of marks or traces which are produced by the physical pressure of one thing on another (as of a seal upon wax, of afoot upon mud, or of inked type or an etched plate upon paper){
in general, the first impressions made from an etcher's plate are the most valuable
}{the detectives found a clear impression of fingertips on the handle of the door
}{the dentist must get a plaster of paris impression of the jaw before he can make a denture
}But impression may also be used of a definite or distinct trace or traces left on the mind, spirit, character, or memory by the impact of sensation or experience{the shock has left its impression on her nerves
}{his first impression of Paris still remains clear in his memory
}{the incident made no impression on his mind
}Impress is often used in place of impression especially when the reference is to a clear trace left on the character or the personality by some influence{his father's uprightness has left a lasting impress on his character
}{he reveals the impress of Keats's influence in every poem he writes
}{the dusting of the white paper ... is a symbol of the sweeping clear from the mind of all accumulated prejudice that it may receive the impress of beauty in all its freshness and power— Binyon
}Imprint carries a strong implication of sharpness, clearness, or permanence in outline. It may be used in reference to an impression left on a plastic substance{the imprint of a heel in the soil
}{the children left imprints of their feet on the fresh cement of the walk
}The term specifically applies to the printed name of the publisher or, sometimes, of the printer and place and date of publication at the foot of a book's title page{this book bears the imprint of the G. & C. Merriam Company
}Print is often interchangeable with imprint in the general sense of that word but is more likely to be used when the trace is considered with reference to its retention of every line or characteristic detail of the original{the clear print of a fingertip
}It is the preferred term in combinations{footprints in the sand
}{hoofprints
}Stamp applies to an impression produced by or as if by a tool or machine which strikes so hard that it leaves a distinct imprint, often one that serves to authenticate or to approve what is so imprinted, to indicate its origin, or to authorize its passage through the mails. Hence, in extended use, stamp designates a marked or conspicuous impress which wins almost immediate recognition{we do wish as many sons of this university as may be to carry forth that lifelong stamp from her precincts— Quiller-Couch
}{these works have the "classic" stamp upon them, and have been to the artists of the Far East what Greek marbles have been to us— Binyon
}2 notion, thought, idea, concept, conceptionContrasted words: explanation, interpretation, elucidation (see corresponding verbs at EXPLAIN)3 *edition, reprinting, printing, reissue
New Dictionary of Synonyms. 2014.
