Webster's English Dictionary

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infer

Cross references:
  1. imply                 
 
in.fer or in.fer.ri.ble \in-'f*r\ \in-'f*r-*-b*l\ \-'f*r-*r\ vb or 
   in.ferred;  or in.fer.ring [MF or L; MF inferer, fr. L inferre, lit., to 
   carry or bring into,]fr. in- + ferre to carry - more at BEAR 1: to derive 
   as a conclusion from facts or premises  2: GUESS, SURMISE  3a: to involve 
   as a normal outcome of thought  3b: to point out : INDICATE  4: HINT, 
   SUGGEST  : to draw inferences  implies arriving at a conclusion by 
   reasoning from evidence; if the evidence is slight the term comes close to 
   surmise; DEDUCE adds to INFER the special implication of drawing a 
   particular inference from a generalization; CONCLUDE implies arriving at a 
   logically necessary inference at the end of a chain of reasoning; JUDGE 
   stresses critical examination of the evidence on which a conclusion is 
   based; GATHER suggests a direct or intuitive forming of a conclusion from 
   hints or implications usu. in the absence of clear evidence or plain 
   statement - in.fer.ab.le aj SYN syn DEDUCE, CONCLUDE, JUDGE, GATHER: INFER