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

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Etymology

Origin of distinguishing

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

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

distinguishing

"Our recording captured a clear, permanent mark distinguishing the two very first cells, letting us trace nearly every cell we profiled from the embryo back to one or the other," said Kim.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 13, 2026

Hannah Grossman, co-director of High Desert Test Sites, sees Albuquerque’s physical engagement with the landscape as a distinguishing feature of her practice.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 13, 2026

"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

I spent the first three paragraphs of a recent column distinguishing between acknowledging failed climate policy and questioning climate science.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026

Unlike big-men, chiefs could be recognized from afar by visible distinguishing features, such as a large fan worn over the back on Rennell Island in the Southwest Pacific.

From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond

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