Definition
To infer is to reach a conclusion the evidence points to without its being stated outright — from the Latin inferre, 'to carry in'. You see wet streets and infer it rained; a reader infers a character's mood from a single gesture. Inference fills the gap between what is shown and what is meant, so it always carries some risk: a plausible inference can still be wrong. Crucially, the writer implies; the reader infers — the two are not interchangeable.
Examples
- From the scratches on the bone, researchers inferred how the animal had died.
- We can infer from the data that demand will keep rising.
- Readers are left to infer the ending, and must discern the truth the author only hints at.
Collocations
infer from·infer a meaning·reasonable to infer·infer a conclusion
Synonyms
deduce·conclude·gather·surmise·discern
Antonyms
state·specify·assert
Word family
inference (noun)·inferred (adjective)·inferential (adjective)
In TOEFL & IELTS
A pillar of TOEFL/IELTS reading: 'inference' questions ask what a passage implies but does not state, and 'it can be inferred that…' is a stock stem. The classic trap is the imply/infer pair — speakers and texts imply, listeners and readers infer. Learn the noun 'inference' and adjective 'inferential', and treat every inference as provisional, not proven.