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I read a sentence in an article in The Hindu which was:

Certainly some people identify strongly with their community, others identify weakly, and still others move on and adopt the meaning systems of another community.

I don't know what "meaning systems" mean here. Any guesses? And I don't think it is anyhow related to premises it follows and those which follow it.

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It means societal values, or systems of thought that create meaningful identities. Some people identify with the values of the community they're born into, while others adapt to the values of other communities. The article argues that most people are "more intimately attached to the community of birth" and to the values of their birth community.

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  • @Brad "Signboard" is an English word: merriam-webster.com/dictionary/signboard. In particular, at least in the U.S., it refers to signs that direct traffic and travelers, which is the context it is used in in this article. – Katy Aug 24 '19 at 5:29
  • Now that is very interesting because I am sitting here look at a MERRIAM-WEBSTER DICTIONARIES page that says "The word you've entered isn't in" . However I will delete my comment in the light of what you are saying. – Brad Aug 24 '19 at 5:35
  • Very strange when I try your link I get it, When I try mine I don't Obviously. the standard meaning which is not related to sign posts I can find easily in other dictionaries. – Brad Aug 24 '19 at 5:45
  • @Brad "meaning systems" would seem to be legitimate Pschology / Sociology jargon. If you do a search you'll find a number of scholarly papers that use it. Whether the rest of the article is valid I can't say. – Andrew Aug 24 '19 at 15:34
  • @ Andrew; Agreed Yes I did find quite a few references myself , A paper on pregnancy in Tanzania etc. However the use here is a little ummm! However I still have reservations about the question "I don't know what "meaning systems" mean here. Any guesses?" My thoughts tend to be that answers will be just that guesses. It is after all a "guest article" in a non native English publication. A rather politically biased one as well. – Brad Aug 25 '19 at 4:22

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