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Synonyms

tell apart

British  

verb

  1. (tr, adverb) to distinguish between; discern

    can you tell the twins apart?
"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
tell apart Idioms  

  1. Discern or distinguish, as in It's hard to tell the twins apart. [First half of 1900s]

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.

Many are what scientists call cryptic species, meaning they are visually almost impossible to tell apart.

From Science Daily • Jan. 29, 2026

This helps vendors when related species are difficult to tell apart and is expected to reduce mislabelling.

From Salon • Oct. 29, 2024

Both of Oswald’s guns had a story to tell apart from their role in the tragedy of Nov. 22, 1963.

From Slate • Nov. 22, 2023

Short-finned pilot whales and long-finned pilot whales are similar, and difficult to tell apart at sea.

From BBC • Jan. 27, 2023

The boat was symmetrically shaped, with rounded ends that were hard to tell apart.

From "Life of Pi" by Yann Martel

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.