identify
Frequently Asked Questions
- recognize—to be able to tell what something is (and often to know its name), as in He immediately identified/recognized it as a monarch butterfly.
- diagnose or pinpoint, as in My mechanic was finally able to identify/diagnose/pinpoint the problem.
- associate, such as with a certain group or belief, as in She’s known for identifying/associating with the party’s reform wing.
- distinguish, as in Her height identified/distinguished her as the volleyball player.
- establish (who someone is), as in He has been identified/established as the main suspect. Relatedly, to identify someone is to figure out who they are—to establish their identity.
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.
Although previous research has linked high-fat diets to a greater risk of PDAC, scientists have struggled to identify exactly how dietary fat influences the disease.
From Science Daily • Jun. 2, 2026
Anthropic on Tuesday gave approximately 150 organizations around the world access to Mythos, its powerful new AI model whose rapid ability to identify weaknesses in computer security has sparked global concern.
From Barron's • Jun. 2, 2026
Primaries in California identify the top two vote-getters in each race — regardless of party preference — who then advance to November’s general election.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 2, 2026
I had met Imtiyaz twice before, in Ahmedabad, in the stunned days after the crash, when families were still waiting for DNA confirmation to identify their loved ones.
From BBC • Jun. 1, 2026
The descriptions in the bureau’s files were supposed to help identify suspects, but they were comically vague: “Stature: Average. Face: Ordinary.”
From "The Mona Lisa Vanishes" by Nicholas Day
Vocabulary lists containing identify
Tier 2 Words for the SBAC ELA Items
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PARCC: Language of the Test (Grade7)
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Jim Burke's Academic Vocabulary List
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