pick out
Britishverb
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to select for use or special consideration, illustration, etc, as from a group
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to distinguish (an object from its surroundings), as in painting
she picked out the woodwork in white
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to perceive or recognize (a person or thing previously obscured)
we picked out his face among the crowd
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to distinguish (sense or meaning) from or as if from a mass of detail or complication
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to play (a tune) tentatively, by or as if by ear
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Choose, select, as in She picked out the best piece of fabric . [Early 1500s]
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Distinguish, discern from one's surroundings, as in They managed to pick out their mother from the crowd . [Mid-1500s]
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Identify the notes of a tune and play it on an instrument, as in When she was four she could pick out folk songs on the piano . [Late 1800s]
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.
It's not a game England fans remember too fondly, but can you pick out the players who started the match?
From BBC
Rather than helping, closing the eyes made it harder to pick out faint sounds in noisy settings, while relevant visual input provided a clear advantage.
From Science Daily
“She saw me looking at it and later she brought it here, after Tante Jans picked out . . . that.”
From Literature
“My mother made it. I picked out the fabric. It’s called a cheongsam.”
From Literature
“Because he was so sure I would be a son named Edward that there wasn’t another name picked out.”
From Literature
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.
