discrimination
Americannoun
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discriminations
plural
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an act or instance of discriminating, or of making a distinction.
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treatment or consideration of, or making a distinction in favor of or against, a person or thing based on the group, class, or category to which that person or thing belongs rather than on individual merit.
racial and religious intolerance and discrimination.
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the power of making fine distinctions; discriminating judgment.
She chose the colors with great discrimination.
- Synonyms:
- perception, acumen, taste, discernment
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Archaic. something that serves to differentiate.
noun
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unfair treatment of a person, racial group, minority, etc; action based on prejudice
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subtle appreciation in matters of taste
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the ability to see fine distinctions and differences
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electronics the selection of a signal having a particular frequency, amplitude, phase, etc, effected by the elimination of other signals by means of a discriminator
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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nondiscriminationnoun
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prediscriminationnoun
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self-discriminationnoun
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antidiscriminationadjective
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discriminationaladjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of discrimination
First recorded in 1640–50; from Latin discrīminātiōn-, stem of discrīminātiō “division, separation,” literally “a dividing,” equivalent to discrīmināt(us) “separated” (past participle of discrīmināre “to divide up, separate”; see discriminate) + -ion ( def. )
Explanation
Discrimination means distinguishing between two or more people or things. Usually, discrimination means an unfair system that treats one group of people worse than another. Discrimination isn't always a bad thing. You have to use discrimination to tell a good restaurant from a bad one, or a good idea from a bad one. However, this word is very tarnished by its main use these days: as a word for unfair treatment of people, based on racism, sexism, homophobia, or another prejudice. There is a huge history of discrimination in the United States.
Vocabulary lists containing discrimination
Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" Speech (1963)
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The Watsons Go to Birmingham
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"On Women's Right to Vote" by Susan B. Anthony
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Even though the community suffers from extensive poverty due in part to discrimination and the few resources refugees from a war-torn country are able to marshal, it has also produced a large number of entrepreneurs.
From Salon ● Oct. 16, 2026
He said: "With all three unions now engaging with their memberships, we are moving closer to the outcome we have always wanted to achieve: ending pay discrimination in Glasgow City Council once and for all."
From BBC ● Oct. 5, 2026
Katz and Junger sued, accusing their ex-bosses of discrimination and retaliation, and held a press conference.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 5, 2026
It condemned all forms of discrimination against women and girls, and reiterated that sexual slavery of boys, and child marriages and forced forced marriages constituted human rights abuses.
From Barron's ● Oct. 5, 2026
Soon Charley moved downstream and found some discarded bags of garbage, which he went through with discrimination.
From "Travels with Charley in Search of America" by John Steinbeck
The #MeToo movement in 2017 increased awareness of the subtle - and the not so subtle - discriminations women face at work.
From BBC ● Oct. 27, 2024
Italy’s watchdog added that the measures imposed aimed at avoiding discriminations and granting efficiency to any potential new players in the sector.
From Reuters ● Oct. 14, 2021
However, as of mid-August, only 28% of young Black New York City residents are vaccinated, often rooted in distrust of government or current discriminations.
From Washington Times ● Sep. 22, 2021
Our legal system requires these fine discriminations in order to administer whatever passes for justice these days, and Wilson’s own godfather, Daryle Hallums, asked the black community to “stand down” while the crime is investigated.
From Slate ● Aug. 3, 2018
In negotiating the new Treaty with Switzerland she resolutely set her face against all discriminations, or possibilities of discrimination, between French citizens on the score of religion.
From Notes on the Diplomatic History of the Jewish Question by Lucien Wolf
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
