infer
Americanverb (used with object)
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to derive by reasoning; conclude or judge from premises or evidence.
They inferred his displeasure from his cool tone of voice.
- Synonyms:
- suppose, conjecture, imagine, reason, deduce
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(of facts, circumstances, statements, etc.) to indicate or involve as a conclusion; lead to.
verb (used without object)
verb
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to conclude (a state of affairs, supposition, etc) by reasoning from evidence; deduce
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(tr) to have or lead to as a necessary or logical consequence; indicate
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(tr) to hint or imply
Usage
Infer has been used to mean “to hint or suggest” since the 16th century by speakers and writers of unquestioned ability and eminence: The next speaker criticized the proposal, inferring that it was made solely to embarrass the government. Despite its long history, many usage guides condemn the use, maintaining that the proper word for the intended sense is imply and that to use infer is to lose a valuable distinction between the two words. Although the claimed distinction has probably existed chiefly in the pronouncements of usage guides, and although the use of infer to mean “to suggest” usually produces no ambiguity, the distinction too has a long history and is widely observed by many speakers and writers.
The use of infer to mean imply is becoming more and more common in both speech and writing. There is nevertheless a useful distinction between the two which many people would be in favour of maintaining. To infer means `to deduce', and is used in the construction to infer something from something : I inferred from what she said that she had not been well . To imply (sense 1) means `to suggest, to insinuate' and is normally followed by a clause: are you implying that I was responsible for the mistake?
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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uninferableadjective
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inferableadjective
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noninferablyadverb
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inferrableadjective
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inferrernoun
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subinferverb
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noninferableadjective
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misinferverb
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inferablyadverb
Conjugated Forms
Present
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have inferredperfect
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has inferredperfect 3rd person singular
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is inferringprogressive 3rd person singular
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has been inferringperfect progressive 3rd person singular
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am inferringprogressive 1st person singular
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are inferringprogressive
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have been inferringperfect progressive
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inferssingular 3rd person
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inferringparticiple
Past
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had inferredperfect
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had been inferringperfect progressive
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was inferringprogressive singular
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were inferringprogressive plural
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inferredparticiple
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inferredsimple
Future
Etymology
Origin of infer
First recorded in 1520–30; from Latin inferre, equivalent to in- + ferre “to bring, carry, bear”; see origin at in- 2, bear 1
Explanation
When you infer something, you read between the lines. To infer is to make a well informed guess — if you see your mom’s bag on the table, you might infer that she’s home. When you infer, you listen closely to someone and guess at things they mean but haven't actually said. It’s like guessing, but not making wild guesses. You're making deductions — guesses based on logic. Another kind of inferring is more scientific, like when a scientist has part of a dinosaur fossil and can infer what the rest of the dinosaur looked like. When you see the word infer, think "educated guess."
Vocabulary lists containing infer
The SAT: Language of the Test, List 1
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Jim Burke's Academic Vocabulary List
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Vocabulary of the Common Core
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Just as new drivers learn to use a rearview mirror to track other vehicles, "Octopuses can also learn how to use a mirror to infer where things are in the world."
From Science Daily • Jun. 5, 2026
Responding “We bought a Christmas tree” is a happy, cozy statement, reflecting that you will not be spending Christmas alone, or, one can infer, most likely dying alone too.
From Los Angeles Times • May 22, 2026
One might infer, as Baier suggested in his Friday interview, that Iran’s nuclear ambitions are thus effectively contained.
From Slate • May 18, 2026
But what he meant, it is fair to infer from the text, was that nobody builds alone.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 7, 2026
In each case, what you can see points beyond itself to something you can reliably infer.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
