infer

[in-fur]

verb (used with object)

inferred, inferring 

1. 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

2. (of facts, circumstances, statements, etc.) to indicate or involve as a conclusion; lead to.

3. to guess; speculate; surmise.

4. to hint; imply; suggest.

verb (used without object)

inferred, inferring 

1. to draw a conclusion, as by reasoning.

infer

/ ɪnˈfɜː /

verb

1. to conclude (a state of affairs, supposition, etc) by reasoning from evidence; deduce

2. (tr) to have or lead to as a necessary or logical consequence; indicate

3. (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

• inferable adjective
• inferrable adjective
• inferably adverb
• inferrer noun
• misinfer verb
• noninferable adjective
• noninferably adverb
• subinfer verb
• uninferable adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of infer¹

First recorded in 1520–30; from Latin inferre, equivalent to in- + ferre “to bring, carry, bear”; in- ², bear ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of infer¹

C16: from Latin inferre to bring into, from ferre to bear, carry

Example Sentences

The perpetrator would have to keep at least one clue from his victims to feign innocence, but a subtle inconsistency would allow others to infer his guilt.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

In this study, the researchers measured the nitrogen isotopic composition in corals to infer how much nitrogen microorganisms have fixed over the past 120 years.

Read more on Science Daily

By analyzing the jets, researchers can infer conditions in the ocean without having to physically bore through the ice shell.

Read more on Science Daily

"Previous findings have inferred that they exist, or hinted at their presence, but haven't actually confirmed that material has definitively escaped out into space. We've now managed to do this for the first time."

Read more on Science Daily

In John Fetterman’s “Unfettered” you have to infer his political philosophy but he doesn’t make it hard for you.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• ascertain 
• assume 
• construe 
• deduce 
• derive 
• figure out 
• glean 
• guess 
• interpret 
• presume 
• presuppose 
• reckon 
• speculate 
• surmise 

When To Use

What's the difference between infer and imply?

Infer most commonly means to guess or use reasoning to come to a conclusion based on what has been suggested. To imply is to indicate or suggest something without actually stating it.Infer and imply can be confused because they’re often used at opposite ends of the same situation. When someone implies something (suggests it without saying it explicitly), you have to infer their meaning (conclude what it is based on the hints that have been given).For example, you might infer that your friend wants cake for their birthday because they keep talking about how much they like cake and reminding you that their birthday is coming up. Your friend didn’t actually ask for cake, but they implied that they want it by giving you hints. You used these hints to infer that they want cake.Of course, there are situations in which you might infer something when nothing was implied or nothing was intended to be implied.Probably due to the association between the two words, infer is sometimes used to mean the same thing as imply—to hint or suggest. Even though this can be confusing, the meaning of infer can usually be easily inferred from the context in which it’s used.Here’s an example of infer and imply used correctly in a sentence.Example: Even though he only implied that he may be in trouble, we correctly inferred that he was.Want to learn more? Read the full breakdown of the difference between infer and imply.