Interpreting

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. Giving the meaning or explaining the significance of something ; converting spoken words from one language to another orally
2. Making sense of or clarifying information or actions ; providing real-time language translation during conversations
3. Understanding and explaining the sense or intent behind information ; orally conveying a speaker's message in a different language

Etymology: "Interpreting" is the present participle and gerund of "interpret", so its history is that of the verb. The verb came into English from Old French "interpreter", which took it from Latin "interpretari", meaning to explain, expound, or understand. The Latin word was itself built from "interpres", an agent who acted between parties, a go-between or negotiator. That sense of mediating between two sides is still present when someone translates speech in real time, which is the newest meaning here. The verb's earliest English sense was closer to explaining the meaning of something obscure, such as a text, a dream, or an omen, and the idea of unlocking hidden meaning carried over into the modern sense of making sense of information or actions. The meaning of rendering one language into another, spoken aloud for people in a conversation, developed alongside it.

Synonyms: translating, decoding, explaining, clarifying, expounding

Antonyms: misunderstanding, confusing, overlooking, ignoring, misrepresenting