construe

[ verb kuh n-stroo or, esp. British, kon-stroo; noun kon-stroo ]

/ verb kənˈstru or, esp. British, ˈkɒn stru; noun ˈkɒn stru /

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verb (used with object), con·strued, con·stru·ing.

to give the meaning or intention of; explain; interpret.

to deduce by inference or interpretation; infer: He construed her intentions from her gestures.

to translate, especially orally.

to analyze the syntax of; to rehearse the applicable grammatical rules of: to construe a sentence.

to arrange or combine (words, phrases, etc.) syntactically.

verb (used without object), con·strued, con·stru·ing.

to admit of grammatical analysis or interpretation.

noun

the act of construing.

something that is construed.

Nearby words

constructive, constructive dismissal, constructive interference, constructivism, constructor, construe, consubstantial, consubstantiate, consubstantiation, consuela, consuetude

Origin of construe

1325–75; Middle English construen < Latin construere to put together, build, equivalent to con- con- + struere to pile up, arrange, perhaps akin to sternere to spread, strew; see stratum

Related forms

con·stru·er, nounun·con·strued, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for construe

But you must not, my dearest friend, construe common gratitude into love.
Clarissa, Volume 1 (of 9)|Samuel Richardson
Ex vultibus hominum mores colligere—To construe men's characters by their looks.
Dictionary of Quotations from Ancient and Modern, English and Foreign Sources|James Wood
One Gospel in many dialects,—that is the great Pentecost lesson, construe the miracle as we may.
Studies of Christianity|James Martineau
The oath might, if needful, be construed very strictly, and William was disposed to construe it very strictly.
William the Conqueror|Edward Augustus Freeman

When he found the place in his book and began to construe, he floundered hopelessly.
Mike|P. G. Wodehouse

British Dictionary definitions for construe

construe

/ (kənˈstruː) /

verb -strues, -struing or -strued (mainly tr)

to interpret the meaning of (something)you can construe that in different ways

(may take a clause as object) to discover by inference; deduce

to analyse the grammatical structure of; parse (esp a Latin or Greek text as a preliminary to translation)

to combine (words) syntactically

(also intr) old-fashioned to translate literally, esp aloud as an academic exercise

noun

old-fashioned something that is construed, such as a piece of translation

Derived Forms

construable, adjectiveconstruability, nounconstruer, noun

Word Origin for construe

C14: from Latin construere to pile up; see construct

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012