distinguished

adjective

dis·​tin·​guished di-ˈstiŋ-(g)wisht 

1

: marked by eminence, distinction (see distinction sense 4), or excellence

distinguished leadership

our distinguished guest

2

: befitting an eminent person

a distinguished setting

Synonyms

• imposing
• dignified

Choose the Right Synonym for distinguished

famous, renowned, celebrated, noted, notorious, distinguished, eminent, illustrious mean known far and wide.

famous implies little more than the fact of being, sometimes briefly, widely and popularly known.

a famous actress

renowned implies more glory and acclamation.

one of the most renowned figures in sports history

celebrated implies notice and attention especially in print.

the most celebrated beauty of her day

noted suggests well-deserved public attention.

the noted mystery writer

notorious frequently adds to famous an implication of questionableness or evil.

a notorious gangster

distinguished implies acknowledged excellence or superiority.

a distinguished scientist who won the Nobel Prize

eminent implies even greater prominence for outstanding quality or character.

the country's most eminent writers

illustrious stresses enduring honor and glory attached to a deed or person.

illustrious war heroes

Examples of distinguished in a Sentence

She is distinguished for her achievements in genetic research.

heads turned as the well-dressed, distinguished couple strode through the hotel lobby

Recent Examples on the Web

From September 25-28, the Windy City hosts Chicago Gourmet one of the nation’s most distinguished food festivals. —Judy Koutsky, Forbes.com, 28 June 2025

Developers feed their chatbot models on a torrent of material, much of it scraped from the web — everything from distinguished literary works to random babbling — as well as collections holding millions of books, articles, scientific papers and the like, some of it copyrighted. —Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 27 June 2025

Recent Oscar winners Kieran Culkin and Mikey Madison, along with nominees Ariana Grande, Fernanda Torres, Sebastian Stan and Jeremy Strong, are among the 534 distinguished artists and executives invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. —Clayton Davis, Variety, 26 June 2025

Amal Clooney was among the distinguished guests who attended the King’s Trust Awards 2025 on Wednesday in London. —Julia Teti, Footwear News, 25 June 2025

Word History

Etymology

see distinguish

First Known Use

1714, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing distinguished

• as distinguished from

Rhymes for distinguished

• undistinguished
• contradistinguished
• extinguished

Kids Definition

distinguished

adjective

dis·​tin·​guished

: widely known and admired for excellence

a distinguished scientist