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

"This is simultaneously one of publishing's greatest failures and triumphs," says Nathan MacDonald, Professor of the Interpretation of the Old Testament at the University of Cambridge.

From Science Daily • Nov. 30, 2025

Lepore’s astute in her discussion of maverick Columbia professor Charles Austin Beard, whose “An Economic Interpretation of the Constitution,” published in 1913, sparked controversy.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 15, 2025

Cardiff council said: "The plaque on the Cardiff Castle Interpretation Centre has been removed and the audio guide discontinued."

From BBC • Aug. 2, 2024

At least, that’s the feeling from recent dry runs of the grand finale of NASA’s OSIRIS-REx, an acronym for the megamouthful Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security-Regolith Explorer.

From Scientific American • Jul. 27, 2023

The very idea of a book about ‘origins’ seems to them contrary to the principles he established in The Whig Interpretation of History.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton

Related Words

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