inference

American  

[in-fer-uhns, -fruhns] / ˈɪn fər əns, -frəns /

noun

1. the act or process of inferring.

2. something that is inferred.

   to make rash inferences.

3. Logic.

   1. the process of deriving the strict logical consequences of assumed premises.

   2. the process of arriving at some conclusion that, though it is not logically derivable from the assumed premises, possesses some degree of probability relative to the premises.

   3. a proposition reached by a process of inference.

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inference British  

/ ˈɪnfərəns, -frəns /

noun

1. the act or process of inferring

2. an inferred conclusion, deduction, etc

3. any process of reasoning from premises to a conclusion

4. logic the specific mode of reasoning used See also deduction induction

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inference Cultural  

1. In logic, the deriving of one idea from another. Inference can proceed through either induction or deduction.

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inference Idioms  

1. see draw an inference.

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Other Word Forms

• misinference noun
• preinference noun
• superinference noun

Etymology

Origin of inference

From the Medieval Latin word inferentia, dating back to 1585–95. See infer, -ence

Explanation

An inference is an idea or conclusion that's drawn from evidence and reasoning. An inference is an educated guess. We learn about some things by experiencing them first-hand, but we gain other knowledge by inference — the process of inferring things based on what is already known. When you make an inference, you're reading between the lines or just looking carefully at the facts and coming to conclusions. You can also make faulty inferences. If you hear a person's weight is 250 pounds, you might make the inference that they're overweight. But what if they're seven feet tall?

Example Sentences

“The demand drivers are clear: Virtually every AI workload, from training, inference, agentic AI to physical AI, creates data that is stored persistently and cost-efficiently on HDDs,” CEO Irving Tan said in the earnings release.

From Barron's • Apr. 30, 2026

Qualcomm announced two chip-based accelerator cards and data-center racks in October as part of a plan to release multiple generations of data-center AI inference products on an annual cadence.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 29, 2026

Cerebras, another inference chip startup, did a major deal with Amazon Web Services this year and earlier in April filed to go public in an IPO.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 28, 2026

“If you believe that the AI inference market is infinitely sized, which I do, this is going to be the chip that is the standard for inference,” he said.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 27, 2026

“Would you give me the time?” said the sergeant, addressing himself to Mr. Pumblechook, as to a man whose appreciative powers justified the inference that he was equal to the time.

From "Great Expectations" by Charles Dickens

Related Words

• assumption
• conjecture
• interpretation
• presumption
• reasoning
• supposition