distinguish Hear it!

distinguish Definition

dis·tin·guish (di stiŋ′gwis̸h)

transitive verb

  1. to separate or mark off by differences; perceive or show the difference in; differentiate
  2. to be an essential characteristic of; characterize
  3. to perceive clearly; recognize plainly by any of the senses
  4. to separate and classify
  5. to make famous or eminent; give distinction to to distinguish oneself in battle

Etymology: < L distinguere, to separate, discriminate < dis-, apart + -stinguere, to prick < IE base *steig-, to prick, pierce (> stick, Ger sticken, to embroider, Gr stigma) + -ish, sense

intransitive verb

to make a distinction (between or among)

Related Forms:

distinguish Synonyms

distinguish

v.

  1. To make distinctions

    discriminate, discriminate between, differentiate, classify, specify, identify, individualize, characterize, separate, tell apart, demarcate, divide, collate, sort out, set apart, mark off, select, see the difference, exercise discrimination, make a distinction, single out, sift, draw the line, tell from, pick and choose, tell which is which, separate the wheat from the chaff*, separate the sheep from the goats*; see also classify, define 1, 2.

  2. To discern

    detect, discriminate, notice; see discover, recognize 1, see 1.

  3. To provide an identification

    identify, label, tag; see mark 2, name 1, 2.

  4. To bestow honor upon

    pay tribute to, signalize, celebrate, ennoble; see admire 1, praise 1. See syn. study at discern.

distinguish implies a recognizing or marking apart from others by special features or characteristic qualities to distinguish good from evil; discriminate suggests a distinguishing of minute or subtle differences between similar things to discriminate scents; differentiate suggests the noting or ascertaining of specific differences between things by comparing in detail their distinguishing qualities or features

distinguish Law Definition

v

In a judicial decision, or an argument such as a brief in support of a particular legal outcome, to note or argue that a prior decision of the same or another court is inapplicable as precedent, because of significant differences in the facts or in the legal posture of the two cases.
distinguish Usage Examples

Object

  • characteristic: In this case, therefore, he was definitely not like Moses in one of the vital, distinguishing characteristics of his prophethood.
  • feature: The distinguishing feature is the easy climb with several hundred kilograms of loose cobbles poised over the lip.
  • epoch: It is not the articles made, but how they are made that enables us to distinguish different economical epochs.
  • mark: The beetle has a distinguishing mark of a broad light band with three black spots on each side.
  • truth: Without critical evaluation and careful scrutiny, there is little hope of distinguishing truth from unfounded belief.
  • type: Here he distinguishes the different types of site under development.

Subject

  • physicality: Lucy: As a band, you are distinguished by the extreme physicality of your live performances.

Preposition: between

  • combatant: First, the parties to the conflict must distinguish between combatants and noncombatants.
  • type: Experienced workers who can distinguish between the various types of fiber carry out the sorting.
  • hypothesis: Analysis of aDNA is the perfect tool for distinguishing between these two hypotheses.
  • fantasy: The journey is one concerned to distinguish between fantasy and reality.
  • kind: Distinguish between the different kinds of paper and ink consumables.
  • category: Most languages distinguish between the broad categories of present ( e.g.

Modifying Another Word

  • sharply: Certainly he did not sharply distinguish between literature and philosophy.
  • clearly: Views or opinions based on general knowledge or belief should be clearly distinguished from views or opinions derived from the statistical analyzes being reported.
  • reliably: This technique reliably distinguishes F. circinatum from other species in this complex.

Used with why or when

  • which: Vol XLV 1989 ). How did the clerks managed to distinguish which spelling to use?
  • who: The only difference that I could notice was my ability to distinguish who was saying what.
  • what: Distinguishing what is encoded from what is inferred can be difficult at first.

Preposition: by

  • physicality: Lucy: As a band, you are distinguished by the extreme physicality of your live performances.