1
as in deriving
to form an opinion or reach a conclusion through reasoning and information
he inferred that she had left because her coat was gone
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in implying
to convey an idea indirectly
the results infer that there might be a problem with one piece of the equipment
Synonyms & Similar Words
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 inferring
Large language models are extraordinarily good at inferring context clues—in this case, the user’s name, professional background, and likely objections—and tailoring output accordingly.
—
Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 3 Mar. 2026
His real talent seemed to be inferring some of the more mundane details of my life.
—Webb Wright, Scientific American, 18 Aug. 2025
Like detectives reconstructing a crime scene or archaeologists inferring the entire shape of a pot from a minimal number of fragments, scholars of historical linguistics figure out the earlier forms that must have given rise to words in many different languages and connect the dots between them.
—Martha Barnette
august 6, Literary Hub, 6 Aug. 2025
As the doctors weighed in, AI algorithms monitored the behavior of each participant, inferring how strongly each felt about their choice based on the relative motions of their icon over time.
—IEEE Spectrum, 13 Sep. 2018
Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 3 Mar. 2026
His real talent seemed to be inferring some of the more mundane details of my life.
—Webb Wright, Scientific American, 18 Aug. 2025
Like detectives reconstructing a crime scene or archaeologists inferring the entire shape of a pot from a minimal number of fragments, scholars of historical linguistics figure out the earlier forms that must have given rise to words in many different languages and connect the dots between them.
—Martha Barnette
august 6, Literary Hub, 6 Aug. 2025
As the doctors weighed in, AI algorithms monitored the behavior of each participant, inferring how strongly each felt about their choice based on the relative motions of their icon over time.
—IEEE Spectrum, 13 Sep. 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for inferring
Verb
-
The very legitimacy of deriving general principles from the particulars of experience can never be established from experience without already having the principle in hand.—
Christopher Beha,
New Yorker,
14 Feb. 2026
-
Large language models represent the first technology capable of analyzing, contextualizing and deriving insights from this avalanche of information.—
Sahar Hashmi,
Forbes.com,
25 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Market pricing is implying no moves in either direction before the end of the year.—
Jeff Cox,
CNBC,
30 Mar. 2026
-
In a response posted to social media, Kennedy hit back at the pediatrics academy's criticism, implying that corporate pharmaceutical funders influenced the organization's views.—
Mary Walrath-Holdridge,
USA Today,
22 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Vera Rubin, an astronomer whose observations of galaxy rotation curves in the 1970s provided the first robust evidence for dark matter's existence, embraced her Jewish faith as a guide to understanding her role in the universe.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
29 Mar. 2026
-
Preparation means understanding your client’s business, their operational needs, and their financial guardrails.—
Allen Buchanan,
Oc Register,
28 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
With another piece of paper indicating her pregnancy was not ectopic, though, Hall had left the clinic thinking that concern didn’t apply to her.—
Emily Brindley
Health Reporter,
Dallas Morning News,
27 Mar. 2026
-
Israel has yet to publicly comment on the peace terms during the latest war of words, with reports indicating Israeli government had been blindsided with Washington's proposal.—
Anniek Bao,
CNBC,
26 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Global firms consider enforcement regimes when deciding where to locate research, production, and scaling operations.—
Laura Peter,
Fortune,
29 Mar. 2026
-
Even experienced players can misread a pitch by inches, which makes deciding whether to challenge even more difficult.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
28 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Hospital executives are hinting of a second wave of layoffs as some downsize their operations while the federal government continues to close the funding spigot for health care programs in phases over the next several years.—
Pat Maio,
Oc Register,
22 Mar. 2026
-
Meanwhile, wildly popular Korean fragrance label Nonfiction has officially made its way stateside, hinting that K-beauty’s influence may soon extend well beyond skincare and into the perfume aisle.—
Conçetta Ciarlo,
Vogue,
16 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The hackers never demanded a ransom, suggesting they were motivated by destruction and chaos, not profit.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
29 Mar. 2026
-
The most damaging incident for Meta occurred in 2021, when Haugen, a former Facebook product manager turned whistleblower, leaked a trove of documents suggesting the company knew of the potential harms of its products.—
Jonathan Vanian,
CNBC,
29 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Inferring.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/inferring. Accessed 3 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
