Construal: an idea central to Cognitive Grammar. Relates to the way a language user chooses to 'package' and 'present' a conceptual representation as encoded in language, which in turn has consequences for the conceptual representation that the utterance evokes in the mind of the hearer. In so doing, the speaker imposes a unique construal upon that scene. For example, the active construction focuses attention upon the agent of an action (e.g. Max hid Angela's keys) while the passive construction focuses attention upon the patient (e.g. Angela's keys were hidden by Max). Each of these constructions conventionally encodes a distinct construal., Enamasti võib rääkida tõlgendusest, kui pole tingimata oluline protsessi kahesuunalisus. Näiteks Crofti ja Cruse'i ning ka Evansi näidetes kuulajapoolne lahtimõtestamine on ikkagi pigem kõneleja tehtud valikutest sõltuv.