infer

Origin:

late 15th century (in the sense 'bring about, inflict'): from Latin inferre 'bring in, bring about' (in medieval Latin 'deduce'), from in- 'into' + ferre 'bring'

There is a distinction in meaning between infer and imply. In the sentence the speaker implied that the general had been a traitor, the word implied means that something in the speaker’s words ‘suggested’ that this man was a traitor (although nothing so explicit was actually stated). However, in we inferred from his words that the general had been a traitor, the word inferred means that something in the speaker’s words enabled the listeners to ‘deduce’ that the man was a traitor. The two words infer and imply can describe the same event, but from different angles. Mistakes occur when infer is used to mean imply, as in are you inferring that I’m a liar? (instead of are you implying that I’m a liar?).

Spelling rule

If a verb ends with a single vowel plus a consonant, and the stress is at the end of the word (as in refer), double the last letter when adding -ing or -ed: (infers, inferring, inferred).