interpretation

American  

[in-tur-pri-tey-shuhn] / ɪnˌtɜr prɪˈteɪ ʃən /

noun

1. the act of interpreting; elucidation; explication.

   This writer's work demands interpretation.

2. an explanation of the meaning of another's artistic or creative work; an elucidation.

   an interpretation of a poem.

3. a conception of another's behavior.

   a charitable interpretation of his tactlessness.

4. a way of interpreting.

5. the rendering of a dramatic part, music, etc., so as to bring out the meaning, or to indicate one's particular conception of it.

6. oral translation.

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interpretation British  

/ ɪnˌtɜːprɪˈteɪʃən /

noun

1. the act or process of interpreting or explaining; elucidation

2. the result of interpreting; an explanation

3. a particular view of an artistic work, esp as expressed by stylistic individuality in its performance

4. explanation, as of the environment, a historical site, etc, provided by the use of original objects, personal experience, visual display material, etc

5. logic an allocation of significance to the terms of a purely formal system, by specifying ranges for the variables, denotations for the individual constants, etc; a function from the formal language to such elements of a possible world

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Other Word Forms

• interpretational
  adjective
• noninterpretational
  adjective
• overinterpretation
  noun
• preinterpretation
  noun
• reinterpretation
  noun
• self-interpretation
  noun

Etymology

Origin of interpretation

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English, from Latin interpretātiōn-, stem of interpretātiō; equivalent to interpret ( def. ) + -ation ( def. )

Explanation

When your favorite band covers a classic tune, their version is their interpretation — their translation — of the music. Is it better than the original? That's up for interpretation. Interpretation is the act of explaining, reframing, or otherwise showing your own understanding of something. A person who translates one language into another is called an interpreter because they are explaining what a person is saying to someone who doesn't understand. Interpretation requires you to first understand the piece of music, text, language, or idea, and then give your explanation of it. A computer may produce masses of data, but it will require your interpretation of the data for people to understand it.

Example Sentences

I met the actor in a London hotel, where he explained his interpretation of the world's most famous spy.

From BBC • May 24, 2026

It also may have been his own ironic interpretation of the unwritten Cannes rule that men should be "en smoking" -- the French term for a black-tie dress suit.

From Barron's • May 22, 2026

The “wormhole” interpretation emerged decades after Einstein and Rosen’s work, when physicists speculated about crossing from one side of spacetime to the other, most notably in the late-1980s research.

From Science Daily • May 22, 2026

Michael Auslin terms Coolidge’s interpretation “more intelligible and congenial to ordinary Americans than the abstract musings of scholars.”

From The Wall Street Journal • May 22, 2026

It is an institutional fact because contracts depend on the interpretation of dates.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton

Related Words

• analysis
• clarification
• explanation
• judgment
• meaning
• perception
• reading
• translation