self-identify

American  

[self-ahy-den-ti-fahy, -i-den-ti-fahy] / ˈsɛlf aɪˈdɛn tɪˌfaɪ, -ɪˈdɛn tɪˌfaɪ /

verb (used without object)

1. identify.

   to self-identify as gay; to self-identify with others in the same situation.

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verb (used with object)

1. identify.

   I've never self-identified myself with that radical mentality. She sometimes self-identifies herself with her patients.

Other Word Forms

• self-identification
  noun

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Etymology

Origin of self-identify

First recorded in 1960–65; self ( def. ) + identify ( def. )

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

self-identify

The collective eyeroll when someone claims they’re a multihyphenate is probably only because most of the people who self-identify that way are just average in five different formats.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 10, 2026

In 2014, India's Supreme Court recognised transgender people as a "third gender" and affirmed their right to self-identify.

From BBC ● Mar. 26, 2026

Activists warned that the bill could upend the lives of thousands, and runs counter to a landmark 2014 Supreme Court ruling that affirmed the right of transgender people to self-identify.

From Barron's ● Mar. 24, 2026

Now consider an economic approach with a menu designed to incentivize firms to self-identify.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 20, 2026

Multiple surveys show that Americans under 30 self-identify as Christian at the same rate as the millennial generation before them, though still at far lower levels than older Americans.

From Salon ● May 5, 2025

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