English
construe
Pronunciation
  • IPA: /kənˈstɹuː/
  • (obsolete) IPA: /ˈkɒnstəɹ/
Noun

construe (plural construes)

  1. A translation.
  2. An interpretation.
Translations Translations Verb

construe (construes, present participle construing; past and past participle construed)

  1. (transitive) To interpret or explain the meaning of something.
    The world must construe according to its wits; this court must construe according to the law.
    Robert Bolt, ''A Man for All Seasons, 1954
  2. (grammar, transitive) To analyze the grammatical structure of a clause or sentence; to parse.
    • Thus, in a sentence such as:
      (113)      John considers [S Fred to be too sure of himself]
      the italicised Reflexive himself can only be construed with Fred, not with John: this follows from our assumption that non-subject Reflexives must have an antecedent within their own S. Notice, however, that in a sentence such as:
      (114)      John seems to me [S — to have perjured himself]
      himself must be construed with John.
  3. (grammar, ergative) To admit of grammatical analysis.
  4. (transitive) To translate.
  5. To infer.
Translations Translations
  • Russian: разбира́ть


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