impute

verb

im·​pute im-ˈpyüt 

imputed; imputing

transitive verb

1

: to lay the responsibility or blame for (something) often falsely or unjustly

The economic sins imputed to Tito had all been committed to a greater extent by the communist parties of neighbouring countries.

—Hugh Seton-Watson

2

: to credit or ascribe (something) to a person or a cause : attribute

our vices as well as our virtues have been imputed to bodily derangement

—B. N. Cardozo

imputability

im-ˌpyü-tə-ˈbi-lə-tē 

noun

imputable

im-ˈpyü-tə-bəl 

adjective

Did you know?

Impute is a formal word typically used in contexts in which a motive, act, or emotion is credited or ascribed to someone, especially falsely or unfairly. For example, if you impute dishonesty to someone you’re asserting that they’re not telling the truth. And if you impute selfish motives to someone’s actions you’re asserting that they were motivated by selfishness. In the form imputed the word is often paired with income: imputed income is income calculated from the supposed value of intangible or non-cash sources, such as use of a company car, or an employee discount. What’s the connection between these meanings? Both involve considering someone or something in a particular way, tying each meaning to the word’s Latin ancestor: putare means “to consider.”

Synonyms

• ascribe
• attribute

Choose the Right Synonym for impute

ascribe, attribute, assign, impute, credit mean to lay something to the account of a person or thing.

ascribe suggests an inferring or conjecturing of cause, quality, authorship.

forged paintings formerly ascribed to masters

attribute suggests less tentativeness than ascribe, less definiteness than assign.

attributed to Rembrandt but possibly done by an associate

assign implies ascribing with certainty or after deliberation.

assigned the bones to the Cretaceous period

impute suggests ascribing something that brings discredit by way of accusation or blame.

tried to impute sinister motives to my actions

credit implies ascribing a thing or especially an action to a person or other thing as its agent, source, or explanation.

credited his teammates for his success

Examples of impute in a Sentence

people often impute his silence to unfriendliness and not to the shyness it really represents

Recent Examples on the Web

That Caillebotte painted men, if not only men, has been seen to suggest a desire for men, imputing to works like Man at His Bath a whiff of homoeroticism that the curators did not shy away from exploring in their wall texts and catalogue essays. —James Meyer, Artforum, 1 May 2025

In a speech delivered Wednesday in Paris, Governor Christopher Waller had a more optimistic take on inflation, saying that imputed, or estimated, prices that feed into inflation data are keeping rates high, while observed prices are showing moderation. —Jeff Cox, CNBC, 9 Jan. 2025

For a 1,500 mile flight, for example, only about $400 of income would be imputed under what’s known as the Standard Industry Fare Level (SIFL) rate. —Kelly Phillips Erb, Forbes, 11 Dec. 2024

But new multiple-imputation software that uses machine learning (opens a new tab) has been able to impute more complicated data. —Quanta Magazine, 2 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Anglo-French imputer, from Latin imputare, from in- + putare to consider

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for impute

• acute
• aleut
• astute
• beetroot
• breadfruit
• cheroot
• commute
• compute
• confute
• dilute
• dispute
• elute

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Kids Definition

impute

verb

im·​pute im-ˈpyüt 

imputed; imputing

: to give the blame or credit for to some person or cause

imputable

-ˈpyüt-ə-bəl 

adjective

Legal Definition

impute

transitive verb

im·​pute im-ˈpyüt 

imputed; imputing

1

: to consider or calculate as a value or cost (as for taxation)

broadly : to reckon as an actual thing

impute a benefit from the use of the car

2

in the civil law of Louisiana : to direct (payment) to principal or interest

3

: to attribute to a party especially because of responsibility for another

impute knowledge to his corporate superior

imputation

ˌim-pyə-ˈtā-shən 

noun