as in characteristic
serving to identify as belonging to an individual or group
a novice birder still learning the distinguishing features of various finches
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1
as in differentiating
to understand or point out the difference in
even at such a young age, he could distinguish the calls of various birds
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2
as in characterizing
to be an important feature of
a collection of recipes distinguished by their ease and simplicity
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3
as in identifying
to find out or establish the identity of
learned at an early age to distinguish the sound of a piano in an orchestra
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4
as in noticing
to make note of (something) through the use of one's eyes
could barely distinguish the garden gate through the mist
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5
as in classifying
to arrange or assign according to type
on the exam we were asked to distinguish the specimens by acidity
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Thesaurus Entries Near distinguishing
Cite this Entry
“Distinguishing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/distinguishing. Accessed 21 Sep. 2023.
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More from Merriam-Webster on distinguishing
Nglish: Translation of distinguishing for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of distinguishing for Arabic Speakers
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