College Composition / Unit 10 CMP 0238 short lesson, about 20 seconds
Imply and Infer
Captions available
The idea
To imply is to suggest something without saying it; to infer is to conclude something from evidence.
In practice
"Your email implies you are upset, and I infer from it that the meeting went badly." Writers and speakers imply; readers and listeners infer.
Where people slip
The two are not interchangeable, and rhetorical analysis uses both often.
Your place on the trail
Every lesson rests on earlier ones and opens later ones. Tap any to jump.
Builds on
Unlocks
- Nothing yet depends on this.
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