marked
Americanadjective
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strikingly noticeable; conspicuous.
with marked success.
- Synonyms:
- prominent, obvious, outstanding, striking
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watched as an object of suspicion or vengeance.
a marked man.
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having a mark or marks.
beautifully marked birds; to read the marked pages.
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Linguistics.
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(of a phoneme) characterized by the presence of a phonological feature that serves to distinguish it from an otherwise similar phoneme lacking that feature, as (d), which, in contrast to (t), is characterized by the presence of voicing.
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characterized by the presence of a marker indicating the grammatical function of a construction, as the plural in English, which, in contrast to the singular, is typically indicated by the presence of the marker -s.
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specifying an additional element of meaning, in contrast to a semantically related item, as drake in contrast to duck, where drake specifies “male” while duck does not necessarily specify sex.
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occurring less typically than an alternative form, as the word order in Down he fell in contrast to the more usual order of He fell down.
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adjective
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obvious, evident, or noticeable
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singled out, esp for punishment, killing, etc
a marked man
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linguistics distinguished by a specific feature, as in phonology. For example, of the two phonemes /t/ and /d/, the /d/ is marked because it exhibits the feature of voice
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of marked
Explanation
Marked is an adjective meaning “clear” or “noticeable.” Filling your living room with pictures of pandas will show your marked appreciation for all things panda. The adjective marked can have several senses. In addition to meaning “very noticeable,” it can be used in relation to the noun mark, as in “to show a mark.” You may have also heard the expression a “marked man.” Marked in this sense means to have been chosen for punishment or a bad ending. Trip your opponent in this year’s field day sack race, and you will likely find yourself a marked man at the next contest.
Vocabulary lists containing marked
"The Crucible" -- Vocabulary from all 4 Acts
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"The Crucible" -- Vocabulary from Act 4
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Beowulf vocabulary
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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.
U.K. pay growth has slowed sharply and has now returned to around pre-COVID levels, a marked contrast with economies such as Japan and the eurozone, where wage pressures remain more persistent.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 6, 2026
We recently marked the 250th anniversary of July 4, 1776.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026
The loss to Maya Joint marked the younger Williams’ first singles match in almost four years.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2026
"The years since my appointment have also been marked by an unrelenting level of public scrutiny and personal attack," he said, adding "there comes a point when the personal cost becomes too great".
From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026
She hummed as she measured and marked her charts, and she sang so loudly when she climbed Lookout Palm to check for sails that a seagull dropped his fish.
From "Nim’s Island" by Wendy Orr
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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.