A synonym for interpretation. As used in law the term is derived from the latin verb construere which in Latin teaching meant to analyse the structure of a sentence – something that in the 15th to 19th century well educated schoolboys spent a lot of time doing. They in turn came up with the English word verb “construe” for the same activity. This in turn led to the use of the word construction to mean the act of interpreting language, particularly legal language, and in particular the structure of everything from statutory language to contract terms, patent claims and language in wills and deeds; hence “claim construction,” “statutory construction,” etc.