1 [reporting verb] give (someone) facts or information; tell: [with object]:he wrote to her, informing her of the situation [with object and direct speech]:‘That’s nothing new,’ she informed him [with object and clause]:they were informed that no risk was involved
[no object] give incriminating information about someone to the police or other authority:he had been recruited by the KGB to inform on his fellow students
2 [with object] give an essential or formative principle or quality to:religion informs every aspect of their lives