ˈinf(ə)rən(t)s also -fərn- noun
( -s )
Etymology: Medieval Latin inferentia, from Latin inferent-, inferens (present participle of inferre ) + -ia -y
1. : the act or process of inferring : the act of passing from one or more propositions, statements, or judgments considered as true to another the truth of which is believed to follow from that of the former
this reasoning … is … stronger than some modern inferences of science — Henry Adams
inferences are made, but implications are discovered
— see immediate inference , mediate inference ; compare deduction 1, induction 2b, transformation rule
2. : something that is inferred : deduction 2 ; especially : a proposition or conclusion arrived at by inferring
the following inferences may be fairly drawn from these facts
3. : the premises and conclusion that represent a process of inferring or that form the determinants of a belief
the conviction that action should be based not on shadowy inference … but on solid fact — C.W.Eliot