infer
Definition from Wiktionary, the free dictionary
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[edit] English
[edit] Etymology
From Latin inferō.
[edit] Pronunciation
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Audio (US) (file)
[edit] Verb
infer (third-person singular simple present infers, present participle inferring, simple past and past participle inferred)
- (obsolete) To introduce (a subject) in speaking, writing etc.; to bring in. [16th-18th c.]
- (transitive) To introduce (something) as a reasoned conclusion; to conclude by reasoning or deduction, as from premises or evidence. [from 16th c.]
- 2010, "Keep calm, but don't carry on", The Economist, 7 Oct 2010:
- It is dangerous to infer too much from martial bluster in British politics: at the first hint of trouble, channelling Churchill is a default tactic for beleaguered leaders of all sorts.
- 2010, "Keep calm, but don't carry on", The Economist, 7 Oct 2010:
- (intransitive) To draw a conclusion or inference by reasoning. [from 16th c.]
- (transitive) To lead to (something) as a consequence; to imply. (Now often considered incorrect, especially with a person as subject.) [from 16th c.]
- 1603, John Florio, translating Michel de Montaigne, Essays, II.3:
- These and a thousand like propositions, which concurre in this purpose, do evidently inferre [transl. sonnent] some thing beyond patient expecting of death it selfe to be suffered in this life [...].
- 1603, John Florio, translating Michel de Montaigne, Essays, II.3:
[edit] Usage notes
There are two ways in which the word "infer" is sometimes used as if it meant "imply". "Implication" is done by a person when making a "statement", whereas "inference" is done to a proposition after it had already been made or assumed. Secondly, the word "infer" can sometimes be used to mean "allude" or "express" in a suggestive manner rather than as a direct "statement". Using the word "infer" in this sense is now generally considered incorrect. [1] [2]
[edit] Synonyms
[edit] Related terms
[edit] Translations
(transitive) To conclude by reasoning or deduction, as from premises or evidence
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(intransitive) To draw a conclusion (by reasoning)
To imply: to have as a necessary consequence
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[edit] Anagrams
[edit] Latin
[edit] Verb
īnfer
- second-person singular present active imperative of īnferō
