construe

verb

kən-ˈstrü How to pronounce construe (audio)
Definition of construenext
as in to interpret
to make plain or understandable the role of the justices of the Supreme Court in construing the constitution

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of construe This article is provided for informational and educational purposes only and should not be construed as investment, legal, tax, or psychological advice. — Wes Moss, Forbes.com, 10 July 2026 That could be construed as not wanting to finish second in the group. — Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 24 June 2026 Making prosecution more efficient Case dismissals triggered by a lack of resources could be construed as the recalibration of a historically punitive legal system. — Rebecca Dunlea, The Conversation, 17 June 2026 That order explicitly said that nothing in it should be construed as creating a mandatory licensing regime. — Maggie Eastland, Los Angeles Times, 14 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for construe
Recent Examples of Synonyms for construe
  1. explain
  2. clarify
  3. illustrate
  4. demonstrate
  5. interpret
  6. explicate
  7. elucidate
Verb
  • The enterprise fund is generated from airport user fees, such as airline terminal rents, aircraft landing fees, parking revenues and rental car customer facility charges, Johnson explained.
    — Sacbee.com, Sacbee.com, 27 July 2026
  • Indefinite Causal Order Quantum systems often display behaviors that are difficult to explain with classical physics.
    — Ameya Paleja, Interesting Engineering, 27 July 2026
Definition of explain
Verb
  • Name the expectations, choose one check-in method, and clarify who owns the next step.
    — Tarot.com, Chicago Tribune, 26 July 2026
  • Encourage your team to ask a clarifying question anytime something feels unclear.
    — Esther K. Choy, Forbes.com, 26 July 2026
Definition of clarify
Verb
  • The backtracking illustrates how the politics of criminal justice have shifted since 2020, posing dilemmas for Democrats’ midterm strategy and their ability to enact their preferred solutions.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 31 July 2026
  • With so many clubs stuck in that vast middle, Detroit’s predicament illustrates the fluid nature of this deadline.
    — Patrick Mooney, New York Times, 30 July 2026
Definition of illustrate
Verb
  • Only about half of employees in his research rated leaders highly in demonstrating care.
    — Rodger Dean Duncan, Forbes.com, 30 July 2026
  • The complaint alleges those comments demonstrated bias and prejudice.
    — Ben Wheeler, Kansas City Star, 29 July 2026
Definition of demonstrate
Verb
  • Baldur is more circumspect, irked at having temporarily lost his boat in the mishap, and unsettled by Helge’s teasing manner, which could be interpreted as either adversarial or flirtatious.
    — Dennis Harvey, Variety, 26 July 2026
  • No clinician can manually interpret all of that data across hundreds of patients in real time.
    — Billee Howard, Forbes.com, 26 July 2026
Definition of interpret
Verb
  • The exhibit mostly circumvents contextualizing the architectural details of the office, and rather aims to explicate the man who worked within it.
    — Katherine McLaughlin, Architectural Digest, 26 June 2026
  • His paragon, surprisingly, was Adorno, who, notwithstanding his mandarin prose, often explicated his ideas on radio and television.
    — Alex Ross, New Yorker, 15 June 2026
Definition of explicate
Verb
  • But data elucidating the reasons behind the declining birth rate could be crucial in designing policy interventions to address the crisis.
    — Sasha Rogelberg, Fortune, 12 June 2026
  • However, there are strong definitional issues when attempting to elucidate blogs within a journalism context.
    — Jeremy Saks, Encyclopedia Britannica, 26 May 2026
Definition of elucidate

Browse Nearby Words

constructs
construe
construed
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Cite this Entry

“Construe.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/construe. Accessed 31 Jul. 2026.

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Nglish: Translation of construe for Spanish Speakers

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