individuate
Americanverb (used with object)
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to form into an individual or distinct entity.
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to give an individual or distinctive character to; individualize.
verb (used without object)
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to make distinctions.
to individuate among one's students.
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to become individualized or distinctive.
With maturity, the artist individuated.
verb
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to give individuality or an individual form to
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to distinguish from others of the same species or group; individualize
Other Word Forms
- individuator noun
- unindividuated adjective
Etymology
Origin of individuate
First recorded in 1605–15; from Medieval Latin indīviduātus, past participle of indīviduāre “to make individual”; individual, -ate 1
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.
The Jonas Brothers in 2023 offer cool adult-contemporary sounds for an audience that grew up with them, similarly navigating the life that emerges once you begin to individuate, become intimate and start families.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 26, 2023
But at varying points, each tries to individuate themselves from their father, and much of the suspense lies in how Rupert schemes to draw them back under his influence.
From Washington Post • Sep. 23, 2022
The relationships are so close and you have to start to individuate in terms of roles and who is getting what information.
From The Verge • May 3, 2022
Fungi are also notoriously elusive: They mostly lay underground, sprout unpredictably, and their intricately tangled networks can make them difficult to individuate as single specimens.
From Salon • Sep. 7, 2021
If the nature is simple it is of itself individual; if composite, the intrinsic principles from which it results—i.e. matter and form essentially united—suffice to individuate it.
From Ontology or the Theory of Being by Coffey, Peter
Definitions 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.
