distinguish
[verb]
Synonyms:
- differentiate, ascertain, decide, determine, discriminate, judge, tell apart, tell the difference
- characterize, categorize, classify, mark, separate, set apart, single out
- make out, discern, know, perceive, pick out, recognize, see, tell

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Antonyms: confound
Contrasted words: confuse, mistake
Related Idioms: set apart
Related Words: divide, part, detach, disengage, demarcate, set off

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English Thesaurus: recognize, identify, distinguish, make something/somebody out, discern, ...

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

dis‧tin‧guish S3 W3 /dɪˈstɪŋɡwɪʃ/ verb
[Date: 1500-1600; Language: French; Origin: distinguer, from Latin distinguere 'to separate using a sharp pointed object']

1. [intransitive and transitive] to recognize and understand the difference between two or more things or people Synonym : differentiate
distinguish between
His attorney argued that Cope could not distinguish between right and wrong.
distinguish somebody/something from
a method of distinguishing cancer cells from normal tissue

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In everyday English, people usually use the phrases tell the difference between somebody/something or tell somebody/something from somebody/something, rather than distinguish:
He can’t tell the difference between right and wrong.
How do you tell cancer cells from healthy cells?

2. [transitive not in progressive] to be the thing that makes someone or something different or special
distinguish somebody/something from
The factor that distinguishes this company from the competition is customer service.
distinguishing feature/mark/characteristic
The main distinguishing feature of this species is the leaf shape.

3. [transitive not in progressive] written to be able to see the shape of something or hear a particular sound:
The light was too dim for me to distinguish anything clearly.

4. distinguish yourself to do something so well that people notice and remember you:
He distinguished himself on several occasions in the civil war.

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

distinguish
verb
ADV. clearly, sharply | carefully | easily, readily The adult can be readily distinguished by its orange bill.
VERB + DISTINGUISH be able to, can/could | be unable to | be difficult to, be hard to, be impossible to, be possible to | be important to, be necessary to It is important to distinguish between cause and effect.
PREP. between It is often difficult to distinguish clearly between fact and fiction in this book.
from She could not distinguish one child from another.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

recognize to know who someone is or what something is, especially because you have seen or heard them before:
I hadn’t seen her for ten years, but I recognized her immediately.
Do you recognize this song?
identify to recognize someone or something and say who or what they are:
As they came closer, I was able to identify two of the group.
It’s delicious but I can’t quite identify the taste.
distinguish to recognize and understand the difference between two or more things or people:
By this age, kids can usually distinguish between right and wrong.
It’s often difficult to distinguish identical twins from each other.
make something/somebody out to be able to see or hear something or someone – used when it is very difficult to do this:
In the distance, I could just make out the outline of an island.
He whispered something but I couldn’t make out what it was.
discern /dɪˈsɜːn $ -ɜːrn/ formal to notice or understand something by looking carefully or thinking about it carefully:
I thought I discerned a faint gleam of hope in his eyes.
A number of differences can be discerned in the data for the three countries.
know to recognize someone or something. Know is often used in everyday English instead of recognize:
How do you know that it is real gold?
I know him from somewhere.
I can’t remember his name, but I know his face.
can tell to be able to recognize someone or something:
I could tell that it was him by his voice.
Can you tell that it’s not real leather?
It’s difficult to be able to tell them apart (=to recognize that they are different).

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲