recognize
/ˈɹekənɑɪz/
Word Rarity
Uncommon
Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.52 in modern English
21
Scrabble Score
9
Letters
3
Syllables
8
Unique Chars
Meaning
verb
To match (something or someone which one currently perceives) to a memory of some previous encounter with the same person or thing.
American usage; Transitive verb
verb
To acknowledge the existence or legality of; to treat as valid or worthy of consideration.
American usage; Transitive verb
verb
To acknowledge or consider (as being a certain thing or having a certain quality or property).
American usage; Transitive verb
verb
To realize or discover the nature of something; apprehend quality in.
American usage; Transitive verb
verb
To show formal appreciation of, as with an award, commendation etc.
American usage; Transitive verb
Example Sentences
- "I recognized his face immediately, although his voice was different."
- "He looked in vain into the stalls for the butcher who had sold fresh meat twice a week, on market days, and he felt a genuine thrill of pleasure when he recognized the red bandana turban of old Aunt Lyddy, the ancient negro woman who had sold him gingerbread and fried fish, and told him weird tales of witchcraft and conjuration, in the old days when, as an idle boy, he had loafed about the market-house."
- "Seeing comes before words. The child looks and recognizes before it can speak."
- "The US and a number of EU countries are expected to recognize Kosovo on Monday."
- "The U.S. recognizes Canadian sovereignty over the islands bordering the passage but insists that the passage itself is an international waterway open to ships of all nations."
- "It is the policy of the United States that no executive department or agency shall issue documents recognizing United States citizenship to […] persons when neither parent of that person is a citizen […]"
Etymology
Origin
Word Breakdown
- Root: *ǵneh₃-, reconoistre, recognosco
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈɹekənɑɪz/
Usage
- American usage
- Transitive verb
- Obsolete
- British usage