Showing results for "distinguishing"

• present participle of distinguish.

distinguishing

American  

[dih-sting-gwi-shing] / dɪˈstɪŋ gwɪ ʃɪŋ /

adjective

1. distinctive; characteristic, as a definitive feature of an individual or group.

   Intricate rhyming is a distinguishing feature of her poetry.

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Other Word Forms

• nondistinguishing
  adjective
• self-distinguishing
  adjective
• undistinguishing
  adjective
• distinguishingly
  adverb
• undistinguishingly
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of distinguishing

First recorded in 1660–70; distinguish + -ing ²

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

distinguishing

"So for example, people of colour, gender, queer people, people with kind of interesting and distinguishing facial features, it means that they're going to be left out," she said.

From BBC ● Oct. 3, 2026

The EV’s most distinguishing feature is its mouthless face that, needing to admit less cooling airflow, omits an upper grille opening.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 5, 2026

Instead they take still images of vehicles, capturing the make, model, color, license plate data and other distinguishing features such as bumper stickers.

From Barron's ● Aug. 9, 2026

First, practice distinguishing between what the Constitution says and what judges and justices say about the Constitution, a document riddled with aspirational vagaries and flexible abstractions.

From Slate ● Jul. 20, 2026

Until finally, irked, she says what his tutor always says, “You listen but don’t hear!” — distinguishing, the way the Chinese will, between effort and result.

From "Typical American" by Gish Jen