discern

play

verb dis·cern \ di-ˈsərn , -ˈzərn \

Definition of discern

transitive verb

1 a :to detect with the eyes

discerned a figure approaching through the fog

b :to detect with senses other than vision

discerned a strange odor

2 :to recognize or identify as separate and distinct :discriminate

discern right from wrong

3 :to come to know or recognize mentally

unable to discern his motives

intransitive verb

:to see or understand the difference

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discerner

noun

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discernible

or less commonly discernable play \-ˈsər-nə-bəl, -ˈzər-\ adjective

—

discernibly

play \-blē\ adverb

See discern defined for English-language learners

See discern defined for kids

Examples of discern in a Sentence

A careful analysis of the "Nutrition Facts" panels might provide some guidance, but you would have to do a lot of math before you could discern the best choice. —David L. Katz, O, The Oprah Magazine, August 2008
The ability to discern value at a glimpse, to sift the useful out of the rejected with as little expenditure of energy as possible, is the great talent of the scavenger. —Matthew Power, Harper's, December 2006
Astronomers are delighted to have found 19 galaxies that appear to be bent out of shape. The distorted images are cosmic mirages, arcs or rings of light created when the gravity of a massive foreground object bends and magnifies the light from a galaxy lying behind it. Albert Einstein predicted the effect … in 1936, but telescopes at the time weren't powerful enough to discern it. —R. Cowen, Science News, 21 Jan. 2006
Despite the layers of ironic hesitation, the reader soon discerns that the emotions informing the book are raw and, more importantly, authentic. —Publishers Weekly, 13 Dec. 1999
The reasons behind this sudden change are difficult to discern.
barely able to discern the garden gate through the mist

Recent Examples of discern from the Web

Librarians have long taught students how to discern reputable sources, more so since the late '90s and the internet age.

— leonard felson, courant.com, "School Libraries Where Kids Now Put Ideas Into Action: Makerspaces, Critical Thinking," 22 Aug. 2017
An immediate consequence might be that spending on analysis declines as the buy side becomes more discerning.

— sarah jones, Bloomberg.com, "Unintended Consequences of MiFID: Job Losses, Trade Turmoil?," 21 Aug. 2017
At 18, Amandla exerts a rare, discerning on-screen force that is changing the movie-making industry from the inside out, one riveting role after another.

— josh olins, Teen Vogue, "Amandla Stenberg and Janelle Monáe Open Up About Racism and Where They Were During the Election," 15 Aug. 2017
Frustrated, Issa spends most of the episode cyberstalking Tasha on Instagram, judging her thirst traps and trying to discern Lawrence’s taste.

— cate young, Cosmopolitan, "Insecure Recap: Issa Deals With the Aftermath of Her "Nebulous" Sex," 31 July 2017
Reassurance is hard—even harder these days because official U.S. statements and policies are difficult to discern and less consistent.

— jon wolfsthal, The Atlantic, "Give Up on Denuclearizing North Korea," 28 July 2017
First, unconscious states of mind are notoriously difficult to discern and require subtle experimental protocols to elicit.

— michael shermer, Scientific American, "Are We All Racists Deep Inside?," 24 July 2017
Analysts discern a pattern in this mutual harassment: whenever politicians on both sides inch towards peace, something nasty seems to happen.

— The Economist, "Hissing cousinsWhy India and Pakistan hate each other," 22 July 2017
Simply put, the federal policy looks at the debts-to-earnings ratios of career-training programs (and, yes, the arts are a career) in an attempt to discern whether the programs provide students reasonable returns on their investment in tuition.

— chris jones, chicagotribune.com, "Harvard blues: Why high tuition for arts education is a lousy idea," 21 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'discern.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of discern

Middle English, from Middle French discerner, from Latin discernere to separate, distinguish between, from dis- apart + cernere to sift — more at dis-, certain

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First Known Use: 14th century

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