To interpret means to explain what something means or to understand it in a particular way. When you interpret a poem, you figure out what the poet is trying to say beyond just the words on the page. When a teacher interprets your confused expression, she understands that you need help even though you haven't said anything.

Interpretation involves making sense of things that aren't completely obvious. A detective interprets clues at a crime scene to figure out what happened. A musician interprets a piece of music by deciding how fast or slow to play it, how loud or soft, and by bringing their own understanding to the notes on the page. Two actors might interpret the same character differently, each bringing out different aspects of the person.

The word also has a specific meaning in language: an interpreter is someone who translates spoken words from one language to another in real time. At the United Nations, interpreters listen to speeches in one language and immediately speak them in another so everyone can understand.

When you interpret something, you're acting as a bridge between what's unclear and what makes sense. Your interpretation might be different from someone else's, and that's fine. When your friend interprets a movie's ending one way and you see it differently, you're both making meaning from what you watched.