identity
the state or fact of remaining the same one or ones, as under varying aspects or conditions: The identity of the fingerprints on the gun with those on file provided evidence that he was the killer.
the condition of being oneself or itself, and not another: He began to doubt his own identity.
condition or character as to who a person or what a thing is; the qualities, beliefs, etc., that distinguish or identify a person or thing: a case of mistaken identity; a male gender identity; immigrants with strong ethnic identities.
the state or fact of being the same one as described.
the sense of self, providing sameness and continuity in personality over time and sometimes disturbed in mental illnesses, as schizophrenia.
exact likeness in nature or qualities: an identity of interests.
an instance or point of sameness or likeness: to mistake resemblances for identities.
Logic. an assertion that two terms refer to the same thing.
Mathematics.
an equation that is valid for all values of its variables.
Also called identity element, unit element, unity . an element in a set such that the element operating on any other element of the set leaves the second element unchanged.
the property of a function or map such that each element is mapped into itself.
the function or map itself.
Australian Informal. an interesting, famous, or eccentric resident, usually of long standing in a community.
Origin of identity
1word story For identity
“One’s personal characteristics, or the sense of who one is, as perceived by the person or by others,” is a meaning of identity that dates from the early 18th century. Since then, issues of personal identity, especially sexual and gender identity, have provoked discussions about one’s overlapping roles in society. The phrase identity politics “political activity based on or catering to the cultural, ethnic, gender, racial, religious, or social interests that characterize a group identity” was coined in 1973.
Other words for identity
Other words from identity
- non·i·den·ti·ty, noun
Words Nearby identity
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use identity in a sentence
They were spurred by their research, which revealed Ghanaian banks to be beset by widespread identity fraud and cybercrime and spent nearly $400 million a year to identify their customers.
The race to build facial recognition tech for Africa is being led by this award-winning engineer | Audrey Donkor | September 17, 2020 | QuartzNow we have different sorts of status hierarchies for each identity—related to, for example, class or occupation—and a fire hose of social information layered on top of our personal relationships.
Acquiring these user identities is one step, the next is to connect a given user identity cohesively across all points in the brand’s digital ecosystem.
Deep Dive: How the Summer of 2020 forced brand marketing to change for the better | jim cooper | September 14, 2020 | DigidayThe information requested by these systems to verify a voter’s identity is often easily discoverable,and sometimes even a matter of public record in states that make voter files public.
Voting by mail is more secure than the President says. How to make it even safer | matthewheimer | September 13, 2020 | FortuneThe James Beard Foundation is experiencing something of an identity crisis.
The Mess That Is the 2020 James Beard Awards, Explained | Elazar Sontag | September 11, 2020 | Eater
But he, like many people using dating apps whatever their sexual identity, remains stoutly positive.
They are not the actual traffickers, Yazbek says, so generally the other refugees protect their identity.
But those strands of his identity are all wound around the conspiracy that led him back to Gambia for the first time in 23 years.
The Shadowy U.S. Veteran Who Tried to Overthrow a Country | Jacob Siegel | January 6, 2015 | THE DAILY BEASTidentity issues seem to have dogged Otis since his troubles began.
His First Day Out Of Jail After 40 Years: Adjusting To Life Outside | Justin Rohrlich | January 3, 2015 | THE DAILY BEASTIn a remote location with little means for economic development, the Brogpas have cultivating this identity to their advantage.
Now the Waterford and Limerick were to lose, not only the Ennis line, but all their lines and their own identity as well.
Fifty Years of Railway Life in England, Scotland and Ireland | Joseph TatlowThere is a perfect identity of principle, both working to the same good end, between the existing corn-law and the new tariff.
But in all probability, the messenger knew less about the identity of the Eye than Black Hood knew.
Some are constantly being added, others are removed from her communion on earth, but her characteristic absolute identity remains.
The Ordinance of Covenanting | John CunninghamAt least he understood how Jack Carlson had died, even if the mystery of the identity of the Eye had deepened.
British Dictionary definitions for identity
/ (aɪˈdɛntɪtɪ) /
the state of having unique identifying characteristics held by no other person or thing
the individual characteristics by which a person or thing is recognized
Also called: numerical identity the property of being one and the same individual: his loss of memory did not affect his identity
Also called: qualitative identity the state of being the same in nature, quality, etc: they were linked by the identity of their tastes
the state of being the same as a person or thing described or claimed: the identity of the stolen goods has not yet been established
identification of oneself as: moving to London destroyed his Welsh identity
logic
that relation that holds only between any entity and itself
an assertion that that relation holds, as Cicero is Tully
maths
an equation that is valid for all values of its variables, as in (x – y)(x + y) = x ² – y ². Often denoted by the symbol ≡
Also called: identity element a member of a set that when operating on another member, x, produces that member x: the identity for multiplication of numbers is 1 since x .1 = 1. x = x: See also inverse (def. 2b)
Australian and NZ informal a well-known person, esp in a specified locality; figure (esp in the phrase an old identity)
Origin of identity
1Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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