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Definitions

discern

[dih-surn, -zurn] / dɪˈsɜrn, -ˈzɜrn /


Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

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Even if they themselves are cynical about AI’s capabilities, they want job candidates who are willing to learn and discern, someone who exercises good judgment.

From MarketWatch Aug. 13, 2026

“Traditionally, it isn’t so much about somebody being more moderate,” he said, in part because voters can’t always discern moderation among candidates of an opposing party.

From Los Angeles Times Aug. 3, 2026

Is that really what viewers want, to not be able to discern reality, even with all its limitations?

From Salon Jul. 23, 2026

There’s something instructive about the way Mr. Vernon’s presence is so difficult to discern.

From The Wall Street Journal Jul. 21, 2026

She shaded her eyes with one hand, as if this helped her discern us through the thickening sea dusk.

From "The Bell Jar" by Sylvia Plath

Here and elsewhere, Ms. Chan brings artists and their audience to life in a few telling lines, and discerns music-sharing motivations in brushstrokes, embroidery and regalia.

From The Wall Street Journal Jan. 23, 2026

The bad news, however, is that the patterns Turchin discerns suggest that the crisis will almost certainly get worse.

From Salon Jun. 13, 2023

Through his meditations on William Blake’s “The Marriage of Heaven and Hell,” Nemo discerns that liberation can only be attained through creation.

From Seattle Times Mar. 16, 2023

Right up to today, Mead’s keen eye discerns strategies and patterns that may have gone unnoticed.

From Washington Post Sep. 2, 2022

There are three kinds of intelligence: one understands on its own; the second discerns what others understand; and the third neither understands by itself nor through others.

From "The Prince" by Niccolò Machiavelli

Only so much about the subjects who are made the focus of the program can be discerned from flimsy data that’s some 2,000 years old.

From The Wall Street Journal Jul. 21, 2026

The researchers discerned patterns of meaning in lines, notches, dots, and crosses on objects like mammoth tusks as old as 45,000 years in caves in Germany.

From BBC Feb. 26, 2026

Myanmar has a rich culture of fortune-telling, and many believe the future can be discerned by mystics.

From Barron's Dec. 21, 2025

Despite police officers’ efforts to allow political speech, all that could be heard were jeers and insults, though the word “sham” could be discerned amid the din.

From Seattle Times May 20, 2024

There were stops to change drivers and recharge batteries; there were other, longer stops for no reason that could be discerned from inside the van.

From "The Left Hand of Darkness" by Ursula K. Le Guin

Sudeikis says he didn’t offer the scripts because “I didn’t think they were ready for someone who was clearly so discerning to read.”

From Los Angeles Times Aug. 12, 2026

I completed one slow circuit, attempting to look discerning.

From Salon Aug. 4, 2026

A key element of that training is discerning the difference between psychological and spiritual problems, he said.

From Barron's Jul. 19, 2026

The caveat is that they are not making the decisions, but are discerning the mood.

From BBC Jul. 15, 2026

Despite these precautions, from the very first day, the headmistress had no trouble discerning the eccentricities of her new pupil.

From "The House of the Spirits: A Novel" by Isabel Allende




Vocabulary lists containing discern


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