interpret

in·ter·pret

Use interpret in a sentence

An interpreter for the deaf at a church service.

verb

Interpret is defined as to translate or explain what something means.

An example of interpret is a person using sign language to translate what someone is saying to a deaf person.

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"interpret." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 16 December 2018. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/INterpret>.

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interpret. (n.d.). Retrieved December 16th, 2018, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/INterpret

interpret

to explain the meaning of; make understandable: to interpret a poem
to translate (esp. oral remarks)
to have or show one's own understanding of the meaning of; construe: to interpret someone's silence as contempt
to bring out the meaning of; esp., to give one's own conception of (a work of art), as in performance or criticism
to translate (a program in a high-level language) into machine language and execute it, statement by statement: said of an interpreter program

Origin of interpret

Middle English interpreten from Middle French intepréter from Classical Latin interpretari from interpres, agent between two parties, broker, interpreter

to act as an interpreter; explain or translate

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MLA Style

"interpret." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 16 December 2018. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/INterpret>.

APA Style

interpret. (n.d.). Retrieved December 16th, 2018, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/INterpret

interpret

verb

in·ter·pret·ed, in·ter·pret·ing, in·ter·prets

verb

transitive

To explain the meaning of: The newspapers interpreted the ambassador's speech as an attempt at making peace. See Synonyms at explain.
To understand the significance of; construe: interpreted his smile to be an agreement; interpreted the open door as an invitation.
To present or conceptualize the meaning of by means of art or criticism: The actor interpreted the character with great subtlety.
To translate from one language into another: interpreted the ambassador's remarks for the assembly.

verb

intransitive

To serve as an interpreter for speakers of different languages.

Origin of interpret

Middle English interpreten from Old French interpreter from Latin interpretārī from interpres interpret- negotiator, explainer ; see per-⁵ in Indo-European roots.

Related Forms:

in·ter′pret·a·bil′i·ty in·ter′pret·a·ble·ness
noun

in·ter′pret·a·ble
adjective

THE AMERICAN HERITAGE® DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE, FIFTH EDITION by the Editors of the American Heritage Dictionaries. Copyright © 2016, 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

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MLA Style

"interpret." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 16 December 2018. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/INterpret>.

APA Style

interpret. (n.d.). Retrieved December 16th, 2018, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/INterpret

Verb

(third-person singular simple present interprets, present participle interpreting, simple past and past participle interpreted)

To explain or tell the meaning of; to expound; to translate orally into intelligible or familiar language or terms; to decipher; to define; -- applied especially to language, but also to dreams, signs, conduct, mysteries, etc.; as, to interpret the Hebrew language to an Englishman; to interpret an Indian speech.
To apprehend and represent by means of art; to show by illustrative representation; as, an actor interprets the character of Hamlet; a musician interprets a sonata; an artist interprets a landscape.
(intransitive) To act as an interpreter.

Origin

From Middle English interpreten, from Old French enterpreter, (French interpréter), from Latin interpretor (“to explain, expound, interpret”), past participle interpretatus, from interpres (“an agent, broker, explainer, interpreter, negotiator”), from inter (“between”) + -pres, probably the root of pretium (“price”); -pres is probably connected with Ancient Greek φράζειν (phrazein, “to point out, show, explain, declare, speak”), from which φραδή (phrade, “understanding”), φράσις (phrasis, “speech”); see phrase.

English Wiktionary. Available under CC-BY-SA license.

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Link to this page

Cite this page

MLA Style

"interpret." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 16 December 2018. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/INterpret>.

APA Style

interpret. (n.d.). Retrieved December 16th, 2018, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/INterpret

interpret - Computer Definition

To run a program one line at a time. Each line of source language is translated into machine language and then executed.

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