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to deduce

to deduce

45 4.6
Figure out something from facts or evidence
  • verb
  • /dɪˈdjuːs/
translation icon : deducir
  • From the evidence presented during the trial, the jury was able to deduce that the defendant was guilty.
  • deduce from first principles
  • try to deduce
  • possible to deduce

You just look for evidence and try to deduce what what it means.

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Examples

  • What can you deduce from that?

  • You can't just, strictly speaking, deduce it from what came previously.

  • And so you should be able to deduce what this is.

  • Ask those customers a series of questions from which we can deduce what matters to them.

  • Since you found that blood and hair on the support beam, I would deduce that was the cause of the primary injury.

  • And from that we can deduce the way that simple pathways operate.

  • Therefore, we can deduce that these characteristics may be an important part of effective consultation.

    Academic text (2008)
  • Five minutes into the conversation, he had deduced why this should be so.

    Fiction book (1990)
  • When we have observed the pulsation period precisely, we can deduce the average sound speed throughout the star.

    Academic text (1991)
  • We will use public choice theory to deduce some plausible explanations.

    Academic text (1994)

Synonyms

to determine
vsto deduce
781 2.3

To find out a fact by checking or measuring

leans more on reasoning from given facts than on investigative discovery
to conclude
vsto deduce
428 3.1

To decide something after looking at the facts

stresses drawing a conclusion specifically from available facts and evidence
to gather
vsto deduce
272 3.1

Understand something from evidence or from what someone says

is more formal and explicitly about reasoning to a conclusion
to reason
vsto deduce
121 3.3

To think carefully or discuss something to reach a decision

is narrower, focusing on forming a conclusion from available facts
to presume
vsto deduce
89 4.9

To show that something is likely true because of evidence

is firmer, aiming to reach a definite conclusion rather than a probability
to ascertain
vsto deduce
59 5.7

To find out for sure by checking the facts

is less about proving certainty and more about inferring from evidence
to infer
vsto deduce
57 5.5

Decide that something is true using evidence

emphasizes reaching a conclusion rather than merely forming an opinion
to put two and two together
vsto deduce
  • Informal
15 3.8

Figure out what happened from obvious facts

is similar but is not limited to casual or idiomatic conclusions
to derive
vsto deduce
14 4.3

Find a result or conclusion by careful thinking

focuses on concluding from available facts rather than formal derivation
to deduct
vsto deduce
3 4.4

Reach a conclusion by using known facts

has identical meaning but exists as a different form or variant
to reason out
vsto deduce
3 4.8

To think carefully to find an answer to a problem

applies the same logical process specifically to reach a conclusion from facts
1 2.9

To choose what to do after thinking about the options

focuses specifically on drawing a factual conclusion from available evidence

How Certain

to prove
3.1
to conclude
428 3.1
to deduce
45 4.6
guess
768 1.0

Surface Forms

deduce infinitive
deducing present participle
deduces third person singular
deduced past
deduced past participle

Etymology

Deduce comes from Latin parts de- 'down' or 'from' and ducere 'to lead'. So to deduce is to be 'led' from facts to a conclusion, which is why it means reaching a conclusion by reasoning.