construe
verb /kənˈstruː/
/kənˈstruː/
[usually passive] (formal)Verb Forms
| present simple I / you / we / they construe | /kənˈstruː/ /kənˈstruː/ |
| he / she / it construes | /kənˈstruːz/ /kənˈstruːz/ |
| past simple construed | /kənˈstruːd/ /kənˈstruːd/ |
| past participle construed | /kənˈstruːd/ /kənˈstruːd/ |
| -ing form construing | /kənˈstruːɪŋ/ /kənˈstruːɪŋ/ |
- to understand the meaning of a word, a sentence or an action in a particular way synonym interpret
- be construed He considered how the remark was to be construed.
- be construed as something Her words could hardly be construed as an apology.
Word Originlate Middle English: from Latin construere, from con- ‘together’ + struere ‘pile, build’, in late Latin ‘analyse the construction of a sentence’.