Main Entry:

in·fer·ence

Pronunciation:

\ˈin-f(ə-)rən(t)s, -fərn(t)s\

Function:

noun

Date:

1594

1: the act or process of inferring: as a: the act of passing from one proposition, statement, or judgment considered as true to another whose truth is believed to follow from that of the former b: the act of passing from statistical sample data to generalizations (as of the value of population parameters) usually with calculated degrees of certainty 2: something that is inferred ; especially : a proposition arrived at by inference3: the premises and conclusion of a process of inferring