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Synonyms

recognize

American

[rek-uhg-nahyz] / ˈrɛk əgˌnaɪz /

especially British, recognise

verb (used with object)

to identify as something or someone previously seen, known, etc..

He had changed so much that one could scarcely recognize him.
to identify from knowledge of appearance or characteristics.

I recognized him from the description.
They recognized him as a fraud.
to perceive as existing or true; realize.

to be the first to recognize a fact.

Synonyms:

concede, grant, understand, appreciate, acknowledge
to acknowledge as the person entitled to speak at a particular time.

The Speaker recognized the congressman from Maine.
to acknowledge formally as entitled to treatment as a political unit.

The United States promptly recognized Israel.
to acknowledge or accept formally a specified factual or legal situation.

to recognize a successful revolutionary regime as the de facto government of the country.
to acknowledge or treat as valid.

to recognize a claim.
to acknowledge acquaintance with, as by a greeting, handshake, etc.
to show appreciation of (achievement, service, merit, etc.), as by some reward, public honor, or the like.
Law. to acknowledge (an illegitimate child) as one's own.
Biochemistry, Immunology. to bind with, cleave, or otherwise react to (another substance) as a result of fitting its molecular shape or a portion of its shape.

recognize British

/ ˈrɛkəɡˌnaɪz /

verb

to perceive (a person, creature, or thing) to be the same as or belong to the same class as something previously seen or known; know again
to accept or be aware of (a fact, duty, problem, etc)

to recognize necessity
to give formal acknowledgment of the status or legality of (a government, an accredited representative, etc)
to grant (a person) the right to speak in a deliberative body, debate, etc
to give a token of thanks for (a service rendered, etc)
to make formal acknowledgment of (a claim, etc)
to show approval or appreciation of (something good or pleasing)
to acknowledge or greet (a person), as when meeting by chance
(intr) to enter into a recognizance

"Collins 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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Inflected Forms

Participles

Conjugated Forms

Present

Past

Future

Etymology

Origin of recognize

First recorded in 1425–75; recogn(ition) ( def. ) + -ize ( def. ); replacing late Middle English racunnysen, recognisen, from Old French reconuiss-, stem of reconuistre, from Latin recognōscere, equivalent to re- re- ( def. ) + cognōscere “to know ¹ ( def. ) ”; see cognition ( def. )

Explanation

When, at a meeting, you wave your hand wildly, you want to be recognized. When the chairperson finally says, “I recognize the man who is about to fall out of his seat,” don't forget what you wanted to say. The verb recognize comes from the Latin root words re (again) and cognoscere (to know) – literally “to know again” or “to identify.” If your own identical twin doesn't recognize you, you might be wearing too much makeup. Recognize can also mean “to acknowledge” or “to appreciate.” When you recognize the donors for their generous contributions to your fundraising event, your parents say, “You're welcome.”

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Vocabulary lists containing recognize

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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.

See Examples For:

recognize recognizes recognized recognizing

Both El-Sayed, 41, and Rogers, 63, recognize the importance of Jewish votes.

From Barron's ● Oct. 22, 2026

“Our thoughts are with the child and family, and we recognize the serious concerns expressed by residents regarding coyote activity in their neighborhood,” spokesperson Agnes Sibal-von Debschitz wrote in an email.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 22, 2026

In the documentary, Evans recalls that he initially didn’t recognize Holmes because she was wearing a floppy hat, dark sunglasses and a Band-Aid on her face from a scratch by her husky.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 20, 2026

The difference is that readers recognize a newspaper has editors.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 20, 2026

Some of them recognize her, and soon they’re shouting hello and holding up their hands for her to slap.

From "The Wrong Way Home" by Kate O’Shaughnessy

"MMA recognizes the ocean floor surrounding American Samoa carries cultural, economic, and environmental significance, requiring that the pursuit of national security and energy readiness is balanced with rigorous environmental stewardship," he added.

From Barron's ● Oct. 19, 2026

The Europhysics Prize recognizes major advances in condensed matter physics, a field concerned with the physical properties and behavior of materials.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 18, 2026

Like virtually everyone in her generation, Kay recognizes the ground broken by Taylor Swift.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 6, 2026

“So 95% of our force recognizes an Almighty God,” he said.

From Salon ● Oct. 3, 2026

A new consciousness is developing which recognizes that we are one species.

From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan

I bring it up because I recognized something the instant I saw the photographs of Chris Gallant.

From Salon ● Oct. 22, 2026

They have been amply recognized as songwriting collaborators, awarded the Gershwin Prize for Popular Song and inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 21, 2026

"We get satisfaction from the idea that our craftsmanship is recognized in other countries and that people see value in handmade things," Miguel Reynoso, a 58-year-old papel picado producer, told AFP.

From Barron's ● Oct. 21, 2026

Parents must mark one federally recognized race or ethnicity on the application, or it won’t be processed.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 19, 2026

An angular scrawl was all that was left of her beautiful curling signature, but it was soon recognized and loved all over Haarlem.

From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom

Include relevant holdings inside funds, while recognizing that a broad index also contains businesses with other sources of earnings.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 22, 2026

Ng says the repeat collaboration with the Swiss drugmaker also shows global multinationals are recognizing Hansoh’s antibody-drug conjugate capabilities.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 21, 2026

Even when a person is fully unconscious under general anesthesia, their brain may still be doing something remarkable: processing language, recognizing patterns, and even anticipating which words will come next.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 15, 2026

LA28 Cultural Olympiad Executive Director Nora Halpern and Jones provided updates on plans first outlined in May, including an official Cultural Olympiad mark recognizing participating programs and a digital calendar and mapping platform.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 15, 2026

Otherwise he was liable to go from one troublesome island to the next, never recognizing where he was, until the world ran out.

From "The Underground Railroad: A Novel" by Colson Whitehead

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023