The implication was that the school had to improve significantly or face closure.

implication 是名词，来自动词 imply（暗示、意味着），指"隐含的意思"或"言外之意"。这个词由前缀 im-（表示"向内"）和词根 ply（折叠、弯曲）组成，字面意思是"向内折叠"，引申为"隐含的含义"。