distinguish

verb dis·tin·guish \ di-ˈstiŋ-(g)wish \

Updated on: 20 May 2018

Definition of distinguish

transitive verb

1 : to perceive a difference in : mentally separate

so alike they could not be distinguished

2 a : to mark as separate or different

a policy that distinguishes him from other candidates

b : to separate into kinds, classes, or categories

distinguish words by their part of speech

c : to make noteworthy or remarkable : to give prominence or distinction (see distinction 5) to

distinguished themselves as pioneers of hip-hop

d : characterize

recipes distinguished by simplicity

3 a : discern

distinguished a light in the distance

could barely distinguish them in the fog

b : to single out : take special notice of

intransitive verb

: to perceive a difference

distinguish between right and wrong

—

distinguishability

play \-ˌstiŋ-(g)wi-shə-ˈbi-lə-tē\ noun

—

distinguishable

play \-ˈstiŋ-(g)wi-shə-bəl\ adjective

—

distinguishably

play \-blē\ adverb

See distinguish defined for English-language learners

See distinguish defined for kids

Examples of distinguish in a Sentence

You're old enough to distinguish between fact and fantasy.
I have trouble distinguishing between the two of them.
I have trouble distinguishing the difference between the two of them.
You should be able to distinguish fact from fantasy.
The only thing that distinguishes the dogs is their bark.
The singer's voice is what distinguishes the band.
You can't distinguish the detail from this distance.

Recent Examples of distinguish from the Web

Gram staining is a general laboratory method for distinguishing bacteria; Gram-positive organisms like Staphylococcus aureus can separated from Gram-negative organisms like Escherichia coli.

— ian myles, CNN, "A possible new weapon against eczema: live bacteria," 17 May 2018
But under optimal conditions, the team was able to detect and distinguish vibrations from close to four miles away.

— brigit katz, Smithsonian, "Earthquake-Monitoring Technology May Help Protect Elephants from Poachers," 9 May 2018
But unless one back truly distinguishes himself during fall practice, UT will likely utilize a committee approach once again.

— nick moyle, San Antonio Express-News, "Transfer could solve RB woes for Texas," 8 May 2018
His startup recently signed an agreement with HarkerBIO—a company that distinguishes the 3D structures of proteins for pharma companies—to add proteomics services to Meenta’s marketplace.

— megan molteni, WIRED, "This Startup Wants to Be AirBnb for Gene Sequencers," 8 May 2018
Ben & Jerry’s also had an extra distinguishing factor.

— merrill fabry, Time, "Ben & Jerry's Is Turning 40. Here's How They Captured a Trend That Changed American Ice Cream," 4 May 2018
That respect for training and expertise is one of the factors that distinguishes Butters-Fetting as a workplace.

— jessica levy, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Top mechanical contract company Butters-Fetting is hiring," 4 May 2018
As a result of this training process, Paluri said that Facebook’s computers could now distinguish between specific species of birds in photographs as well as the different weather conditions in those photos.

— jonathan vanian, Fortune, "Facebook Used 3.5 Billion Instagram Photos to Improve Its Artificial Intelligence," 2 May 2018
Brown's announcement last week did not address what specific jobs the California Guard would and would not do, nor answer the thorny question of how state officials would distinguish work related to immigration from other duties.

— Bloomberg.com, "AP: California Rejects Border Duties for Troops," 16 Apr. 2018

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

Origin and Etymology of distinguish

alteration of Middle English distinguen, from Anglo-French distinguer, from Latin distinguere, literally, to separate by pricking, from dis- + -stinguere (akin to Latin instigare to urge on) — more at stick

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 15th century

in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

See Words from the same year