noun

cue

Translation

signal, prompt, hint, pool cue

The actor missed his cue to enter the stage.

He chose a new cue for the billiards game.

He chose a new cue for the pool game.

((a cue)) ((for sb./sth.)) ((to-inf)) a signal for action. The director gave the actor a cue to begin.

((take one's cue)) ((from sb./sth.)) to get a signal from someone/something. I took my cue from his silence and left.

Synonyms: signal, prompt, hint, sign.

The 'signal' sense is from the letter 'Q', an abbreviation for Latin 'quando' (when), used in scripts. The pool sense is from French 'queue' (tail).

Remember the two main meanings are homophones: a signal (like waiting in a QUEUE for your turn) and a pool stick (from French 'queue').