Imply and infer are two commonly confused words. To ensure exactness in your word choice, keep reading to learn more about the difference between the two.

Imply is used to suggest something without stating it explicitly. Implying is something a speaker or writer does (either deliberately or accidentally).

Ex. Bob told his friends about his Martian abduction, and the press, when they wrote the story, implied mental illness might be in his past.

Notice that it was the press, the writers in the second part of the sentence, who imply that Bob might be suffering from mental illness.

Ex. When Bob talked to the reporters, he implied that he saw Martians.

Bob might not exactly have said he saw Martians the previous night, but his language suggested that he did with the story he told reporters. Notice that it was Bob, the speaker, who did the implying.

Infer indicates that a listener or reader uses evidence-based reasoning to draw a conclusion. Inferring is something a listener or reader does.

Ex. Bob inferred, from what Sally told him, that she will have a lot of reading to do this semester.

Sally told Bob about her semester, apparently, and Bob, from what Sally told him, was able to figure out that she would be reading a lot. Also notice that it was Bob, the listener, who did the inferring, and not Sally.

In addition to our own website, we also recommend the following website: http://homepage.smc.edu/quizzes/cheney_joyce/implyinfer.html. This website will help you test your knowledge on imply and infer.

Determine whether the following sentences should use imply or infer.

1. Bob (implied, inferred) that he was tired.
2. I (implied, inferred) that Sally had hurt herself when I saw her wearing a Band-Aid.
3. Fred (implied, inferred) that his son was restless because his son was bouncing off the walls.
4. John’s girlfriend (implied, inferred) that she wanted to get married, which John (implied, inferred) from the bridal magazines placed strategically around the house.

Answers:

1. Bob implied that he was tired.
2. I inferred that Sally had hurt herself when I saw her wearing a Band-Aid.
3. Fred inferred that his son was restless because his son was bouncing off the walls.
4. John’s girlfriend implied that she wanted to get married, which John inferred from the bridal magazines placed strategically around the house.

Grammatically Correct is a grammar tip of the week created by Academic Center Peer Writing Tutors at the University of Houston-Victoria in Victoria, Texas.

Comments about this newsletter should be directed to Summer Leibensperger, leibenspergers@uhv.edu.

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