Does the speaker imply or infer?

A little morei

Think of the words as direction-of-travel. Imply is an outward verb — sending a message. Infer is an inward verb — drawing a conclusion from what someone else said. The two are not interchangeable, even in casual writing.

The full entryii

More quick answersiii

• → What's the difference between "imply" and "infer"? The speaker implies. The listener infers. Two sides of the same exchange.
• → Can I "infer" something from a text? Yes. Infer means to draw a conclusion from evidence — a text is fair evidence.