countersign

To countersign is to sign a document that someone else has signed already.

(verb)

When you sign a contract for a loan after the borrower has already signed it, this is an example of a time when you countersign the contract.

See countersign in Webster's New World College Dictionary

noun

a signature added to a document previously signed by another, for authentication or confirmation
a secret sign or signal in answer to another, as in a secret society
Mil. a secret word or signal which must be given to a guard or sentry by someone wishing to pass; password

transitive verb

to authenticate (a previously signed document) by adding one's own signature

Related Forms:

See countersign in American Heritage Dictionary 4

transitive verb coun·ter·signed, coun·ter·sign·ing, coun·ter·signs

To sign (a previously signed document), as for authentication.

noun

A second or confirming signature, as on a previously signed document. Also called countersignature.
a. A sign or signal to be given to a sentry in order to obtain passage; a password.
b. A secret sign or signal given in answer to another.

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