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Verb: distinguish  di'sting-gwish
  1. See or hear differences; identify a particular part or parts of a whole; detect with difficulty
    - spot, recognize, recognise [Brit], discern, pick out, make out, tell apart
     
  2. Mark as different
    "We distinguish several kinds of maple";
    - separate, differentiate, secern [rare], secernate, severalize, severalise [Brit], tell, tell apart
     
  3. Be a distinctive feature, attribute, or trait; sometimes in a very positive sense
    "His modesty distinguishes him from his peers";
    - mark, differentiate
     
  4. Make conspicuous or noteworthy
    - signalize, signalise [Brit]
     
  5. Classify or apply the appropriate name to, e.g. in botany or biology
    - identify, discover, key, key out, describe, name

Derived forms: distinguishing, distinguishes, distinguished

See also: tell

Type of: characterise [Brit], characterize, finger [informal], identify, mark, place, qualify

Encyclopedia: Distinguish