distinguish

[ dih-sting-gwish ]

/ dɪˈstɪŋ gwɪʃ /

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See synonyms for: distinguish / distinguished / distinguishes / distinguishing on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object)

to mark off as different (often followed by from or by): He was distinguished from the other boys by his height.

to recognize as distinct or different; recognize the salient or individual features or characteristics of: It is hard to distinguish her from her twin sister.

to perceive clearly by sight or other sense; discern; recognize: He could not distinguish many of the words.

to set apart as different; be a distinctive characteristic of; characterize: It is his Italian accent that distinguishes him.

to make prominent, conspicuous, or eminent: to distinguish oneself in battle.

to divide into classes; classify: Let us distinguish the various types of metaphor.

Archaic. to single out for or honor with special attention.

verb (used without object)

to indicate or show a difference (usually followed by between).

to recognize or note differences; discriminate.

OPPOSITES FOR distinguish

2 confuse.

See antonyms for distinguish on Thesaurus.com

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Origin of distinguish

First recorded in 1555–65; extension, by -ish², of Middle English disting(u)en (from Anglo-French, Middle French distinguer ), from Latin distinguere; see distinct

synonym study for distinguish

2. Distinguish, differentiate, discriminate suggest an attempt to analyze characteristic features or qualities of things. To distinguish is to recognize the characteristic features belonging to a thing: to distinguish a light cruiser from a heavy cruiser. To discriminate is to perceive the particular, nice, or exact differences between things, to determine wherein these differences consist, and to estimate their significance: to discriminate prejudiced from unprejudiced testimony. To differentiate is to point out exactly and in detail the differences between (usually) two things: The symptoms of both diseases are so similar that it is hard to differentiate one from another.

OTHER WORDS FROM distinguish

dis·tin·guish·a·ble, adjectivedis·tin·guish·er, noundis·tin·guish·ment, nounin·ter·dis·tin·guish, verb (used with object)

pre·dis·tin·guish, verb (used with object)re·dis·tin·guish, verb

Words nearby distinguish

distinctive feature, distinctiveness ratio, distinctly, distingué, distinguée, distinguish, distinguishable, distinguished, Distinguished Conduct Medal, Distinguished Flying Cross, Distinguished Service Cross

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use distinguish in a sentence

I mean, this shouldn’t surprise anyone, making the ads harder to distinguish has been a Google trend.
Google goes dark theme and passage ranking sees the light: Friday’s daily brief|Barry Schwartz|February 12, 2021|Search Engine Land
If searchers have a harder time distinguishing between the paid and free listings, it might cause confusion on what listing the searcher clicks on.
Google Search dark theme mode expands but search ads are hard to distinguish|Barry Schwartz|February 11, 2021|Search Engine Land
Science fiction has long been distinguished by these dual impulses—leaving home and returning—when it’s not marked by the way that home leaves us, or deceives us when it’s no longer the place we recognize once we’re back.
In Science Fiction, We Are Never Home - Issue 95: Escape|Steve Erickson|February 10, 2021|Nautilus
In Voice, Police Officer Kang Kwon-Joo has a heightened ability to distinguish sounds, allowing her to solve crime cases as a voice profiler.
The 15 Most Anticipated Korean Dramas of 2021|Kat Moon|January 29, 2021|Time

Filter Link Extensions are another way to distinguish your ads in SERPs.
Microsoft Advertising now offers Filter Link Extensions|Carolyn Lyden|January 26, 2021|Search Engine Land
After years at the head of a parochial school classroom, he could no longer distinguish one blond Irish Catholic kid from another.
Obama’s One Hand Clap With Castro|Doug McIntyre|December 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The line between being careful about what you eat and being obsessive is difficult to distinguish.
Orthorexia: When Healthy Eating Becomes an Obsession|DailyBurn|October 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Food business groups argue that a gram of sugar, natural or added, is a gram of sugar—so why distinguish it?
Guess Who Doesn’t Want You to Know How Much Added Sugar Is in Your Food|Tim Mak|July 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Then there was the attempt to distinguish her tax status from those who are “truly well off.”
Hillary’s Doomed if She Can’t Learn to Talk About Her Privilege|Keli Goff|June 27, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Behind-the-scenes technological differences do not distinguish Aereo's system from cable systems, which do perform publicly.
What the Aereo Decision Means for You|Kyle Chayka|June 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In sorting notes it is necessary to be able readily to distinguish between notes of this bank and notes of other reserve banks.
Readings in Money and Banking|Chester Arthur Phillips
This is a feature by means of which it is always possible to distinguish the Great Horsetail from any other species.
How to Know the Ferns|S. Leonard Bastin
In the darkness and confusion I did not distinguish the face of the man who rendered me this assistance.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, No. CCCXXXIX. January, 1844. Vol. LV.|Various
I had no idea who they were, as the Grand Duke was in morning costume, and had no star or decoration to distinguish him.
Music-Study in Germany|Amy Fay
It reappears during a relapse, and thus helps to distinguish between a relapse and a complication, in which it does not reappear.
A Manual of Clinical Diagnosis|James Campbell Todd

British Dictionary definitions for distinguish

distinguish

/ (dɪˈstɪŋɡwɪʃ) /

verb (mainly tr)

(when intr, foll by between or among) to make, show, or recognize a difference or differences (between or among); differentiate (between)

to be a distinctive feature of; characterize

to make out; perceive

to mark for a special honour or title

to make (oneself) noteworthyhe distinguished himself by his cowardice

to classify; categorizewe distinguished three species

Derived forms of distinguish

distinguishable, adjectivedistinguishably, adverbdistinguisher, noundistinguishing, adjective

distinguishingly, adverb

Word Origin for distinguish

C16: from Latin distinguere to separate, discriminate

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

distinguish

OPPOSITES FOR distinguish

Origin of distinguish

synonym study for distinguish

OTHER WORDS FROM distinguish

Words nearby distinguish

Words related to distinguish

How to use distinguish in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for distinguish

Derived forms of distinguish

Word Origin for distinguish