Imagine you arrive at an old abandoned warehouse to find everything covered in dust. But as you explore, you find a sparklingly clean thermos. You might guess that the thermos hasn’t been there for long, and that somebody might be exploring nearby. This is a valid inference. Or perhaps… the thermos has been trapped in time. This inference has no evidence to support its plausibility. Either way, they’re both inferences! But what does inference mean? We’re going to answer that question by exploring the history of the term alongside some examples. Lock in your final guesses now – let’s answer the question: what is an inference?
Inference Definition Through History
First, let’s define inference
Inference is rooted in the philosophical tradition of logos, AKA reason. Classical Western philosophy generally separated reasoning into two forms: that which was observed or experienced (a posteriori) and that which was deduced by nature of theory (a priori). Our human ability to reason (rather than just observe and react instinctively) is what separates us from other animals.
For example: let’s say that we stumble upon a production crew shooting a zombie movie. We reason that it’s not real because we see camera crews and actors.
Or more simply: let’s imagine that it’s the fourth of July (a holiday in the United States where fireworks are commonly used). We infer that the explosions are fireworks without actually needing to see them.
So, observation vs inference: what’s the difference? An inference is a logical conclusion drawn from either observation or pure reason, AKA theoretical philosophy. Sound tricky? It is. For more on philosophical reasoning, check out this great video from Crash Course.
What is an Inference? • Philosophical Reasoning, by Crash Course
Inferences may sound like difficult things to identify – but they’re actually something we instinctively identify in our everyday lives. We’re going to break down inference examples in a bit, but first let’s formally define inference.
INFERENCE DEFINITION
What is an inference?
An inference is a conclusion drawn from the logical process of reasoning. Inferences serve as the foundation for inductive, deductive, and abductive reasoning.
Related Posts
Inference Meaning Explained
What does inference mean in writing?
How do we make sense of writing? Well, we use inferences. Take the following sentences and consider what they might be trying to communicate:
“There was a flickering flame on the wet-waxed candle. The gold-crusted quill was dripping with ink.”
What do these sentences tell us? We can infer that the presence of “a flickering flame on a wet-waxed candle” implies that somebody lit a candle a little while ago; we can infer that somebody, potentially wealthy, was writing with the “the gold-crusted quill dripping with ink.” We can also infer that the setting of this scene is likely sometime in the distant past considering that writing with quills in the candlelight went out of fashion with the rise of electricity.
How about a professional example? Edgar Allan Poe’s short story “The Murders in the Rue Morgue” is widely considered to be the first piece of detective fiction. The story’s lead detective, C. Auguste Dupin, is played up to be a master of all things inference: induction, deduction, and abduction.
Dupin uses observation and theory to explain both what happened and what will happen. Of course, not even he could predict the ultimate culprit of the murders; that you will have to find out on your own!
This next video does a great job of looking at some other ways you can perform inferences in reading.
What is an Inference? • Inference Examples by Khan Academy
We don’t just use inferences in reading/writing: we use inferences in all aspects of our daily lives; for example: red lights indicate “stop,” snow indicates cold weather, and moonlight indicates nighttime.
So, what is an inference? An inference is simply a drawn conclusion based on the logical process of reasoning.
Up next
What is Abductive Reasoning?
We briefly talked about inductive and deductive reasoning… but what about abductive reasoning? In our next article, we’ll explain abductive reasoning with examples from Knives Out, Dallas Buyers Club, and more. By the end, you’ll know what abductive reasoning means, and how to use it yourself!
