The Complete Vocabulary Builder Workbook

impute

IPA:

Dictionary definition of impute

To attribute a particular action, quality, or responsibility to someone or something.
"It's easy to impute blame, but harder to take responsibility."

Detailed meaning of impute

It involves assigning credit, blame, or a specific characteristic to a person, group, or entity. When you impute something, you are essentially assigning a cause or reason to an action or outcome. This can be either positive or negative, as the verb encompasses both the acknowledgment of positive contributions and the assigning of negative traits. "Impute" involves linking an action or quality to a specific source, often to better understand or explain a situation, behavior, or event.

Example sentences containing impute

1. It's unfair to impute all the blame to one person for the team's failure.
2. She tried to impute her success to hard work and perseverance.
3. Let's not hastily impute motives to others without evidence.
4. Some people mistakenly impute malicious intent to innocent actions.
5. It's incorrect to impute the entire project's success to one individual.
6. Don't impute your own fears onto someone else's decisions.

History and etymology of impute

The verb 'impute' has its etymological roots in Latin. It is derived from the Latin word 'imputare,' which means 'to reckon,' 'to charge with,' or 'to attribute.' In English, 'impute' is used to describe the act of attributing a particular action, quality, or responsibility to someone or something. It implies assigning a credit or blame for a certain event or characteristic. When one imputes something to another, they are essentially assigning that thing to them, often based on perceived evidence or judgment. 'Impute' is a term frequently used in discussions of accountability, causality, and the assignment of credit or blame in various contexts, including legal, moral, and social analyses.

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Further usage examples of impute

1. The media often imputes political bias to news outlets.
2. He didn't want to impute his mistakes onto his colleagues.
3. It's easy to impute negative qualities to people we don't know well.
4. She didn't want to impute her happiness to external circumstances.
5. The report attempted to impute responsibility for the financial crisis.
6. Many people impute motives without knowing the full story.
7. Some critics impute malice where none exists.
8. Don't hastily impute wrongdoing to those who might be innocent.
9. Archaeologists often impute cultural significance to their findings.
10. Do you impute that action to ignorance or spite?
11. It's not fair to impute negative intentions to all politicians.
12. Children sometimes impute magical powers to their toys.
13. We must be cautious when we impute meaning to ancient texts.
14. I wouldn't impute such behavior to him without evidence.
15. They impute too much importance to superficial details.
16. To impute an act to someone without proof is dangerous.
17. Some people impute mystical properties to crystals and gemstones.
18. Historians impute societal shifts to various causes and events.
19. Why do you impute that outcome to luck instead of hard work?
20. We shouldn't impute failure to a lack of effort every time.
21. I'm not trying to impute any malintent on her part.
22. Cultures often impute spiritual values to natural landmarks.
23. While it's tempting, we mustn't impute bias to every differing opinion.
24. To impute is human, but to understand is divine.