as in distinguishing
serving to identify as belonging to an individual or group the marching band's striking black-and-silver uniforms serve as its identifying mark for thousands of parade spectators
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Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in pinpointing
to find out or establish the identity of sufficient forensic evidence to allow investigators to identify the perpetrator
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in associating
to think of (something) in combination for some reason, he always identified the color red with flowers
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of identifying
Scott MacFarlane, CBS News, 18 Dec. 2025 Another intriguing possibility is to wait until the wireless world’s progress to ever-shorter wavelengths finally hits the millimeter band, which is small enough to resolve most identifying details. —IEEE Spectrum, 16 Jan. 2020
Julian Lucas, New Yorker, 20 Apr. 2026 The company says the federal government is responsible for identifying which carriers are safe and cracking down on those that are not. —Michael Kaplan, CBS News, 19 Apr. 2026 Local governments are stepping up, updating codes, engaging communities, identifying sites, and building partnerships, but without reliable funding, even the best plans cannot move forward. —Heidi Williams, Denver Post, 19 Apr. 2026 In Beirut, three judicial officials said the country's Military Tribunal opened an investigation over the incident and is in contact with the army's intelligence department to work on identifying the attackers. —ABC News, 18 Apr. 2026 Authorities are not identifying the victim at this time. —Corey Schmidt, Sacbee.com, 18 Apr. 2026 However, identifying practical and suitable materials for spintronic uses has so far remained a huge challenge. —Georgina Jedikovska, Interesting Engineering, 17 Apr. 2026 Mesh that in with identifying their own greatest priorities, the overall strength of positional groups in the draft and potential trade scenarios — perhaps moving up from 29 or back from 9, or both. —Kansas City Star, 17 Apr. 2026 The study concluded with some recommendations, such as sustaining and expanding programs that work, engaging with with people who have experienced homelessness, identifying funding and supporting neighborhood safety and cleanliness. —Anne Gelhaus, Mercury News, 12 Apr. 2026
Adjective
There are also passports from Lithuania, Ukraine, the Czech Republic and Russia, with most identifying information blacked out. —Scott MacFarlane, CBS News, 18 Dec. 2025 Another intriguing possibility is to wait until the wireless world’s progress to ever-shorter wavelengths finally hits the millimeter band, which is small enough to resolve most identifying details. —IEEE Spectrum, 16 Jan. 2020
Verb
Similarly, corruption or physical damage might destroy a file’s header, which contains its identifying metadata, while leaving other parts of it untouched. —Julian Lucas, New Yorker, 20 Apr. 2026 The company says the federal government is responsible for identifying which carriers are safe and cracking down on those that are not. —Michael Kaplan, CBS News, 19 Apr. 2026 Local governments are stepping up, updating codes, engaging communities, identifying sites, and building partnerships, but without reliable funding, even the best plans cannot move forward. —Heidi Williams, Denver Post, 19 Apr. 2026 In Beirut, three judicial officials said the country's Military Tribunal opened an investigation over the incident and is in contact with the army's intelligence department to work on identifying the attackers. —ABC News, 18 Apr. 2026 Authorities are not identifying the victim at this time. —Corey Schmidt, Sacbee.com, 18 Apr. 2026 However, identifying practical and suitable materials for spintronic uses has so far remained a huge challenge. —Georgina Jedikovska, Interesting Engineering, 17 Apr. 2026 Mesh that in with identifying their own greatest priorities, the overall strength of positional groups in the draft and potential trade scenarios — perhaps moving up from 29 or back from 9, or both. —Kansas City Star, 17 Apr. 2026 The study concluded with some recommendations, such as sustaining and expanding programs that work, engaging with with people who have experienced homelessness, identifying funding and supporting neighborhood safety and cleanliness. —Anne Gelhaus, Mercury News, 12 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for identifying
Verb
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In discussions of people like Michael Jackson, some defenders insist on distinguishing between the artist and the art, but a bio-pic is necessarily about both.— Kelefa Sanneh, New Yorker, 20 Apr. 2026
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The piece contends that mainstream news outlets maintain legitimate standards requiring verification of allegations before publication, distinguishing serious journalism from gossip trafficking by political rivals.— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 17 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The British royal family seems to be trying really hard to distance itself from the Epstein scandal, and part of that involves the King and the major players not associating themselves with Andrew or Fergie again.— Lizzie Lanuza, StyleCaster, 14 Apr. 2026
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Each embedding — a way of associating each point on the sphere to a point within the flag variety — can be defined by a polynomial equation.— Konstantin Kakaes, Quanta Magazine, 13 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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This would be a moral response characteristic of a decent society, but not through force.— Charles F. Miller, Hartford Courant, 21 Apr. 2026
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This was not as characteristic of earlier strains.— Eva Flowe April 20, Charlotte Observer, 20 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Her ability to purify and characterize myelin basic protein was really sort of pinpointing one of the first myelin proteins that came to the attention of neuroscientists.— Marcy Thompson, Scientific American, 16 Apr. 2026
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Headboards carved with topographical maps pinpointing the summit of Denali and whimsical art by local muralist Ted Kim give the 252 rooms a distinctly Alaskan feel.— Travel + Leisure Editors, Travel + Leisure, 15 Apr. 2026
Verb
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By correlating this economic power with global viewership trends, NNAF will validate the thesis that African content is not just culturally significant, but a commercially viable sector ready for institutional scale.— Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 4 Feb. 2026
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These digital twins operate as autonomous agents capable of validating issues, correlating signals, applying fixes and escalating to humans only when needed, compressing resolution times while improving service quality.— Peter High, Forbes.com, 29 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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The company develops distinctive film and television projects that bridge Japan and the United States — a mission reflected in its name, which combines the countries’ calling codes (+1 and +81).— Jazz Tangcay, Variety, 22 Apr. 2026
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The Haudenosaunee have navigated distinctive languages for each nation of the Confederacy.— Tim Brinkhof, JSTOR Daily, 22 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Gabriel, a 5-11 quarterback with middling arm strength, will have a difficult time finding that same opportunity.— Sam Warren, New York Times, 25 Apr. 2026
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Desperation under dire circumstances didn’t stop the Lakers from finding their lifeline in a 112-108 overtime victory over the Houston Rockets, winning the 5-minute extra period 11-7 after a stunning comeback in the final minute of regulation.— Benjamin Royer, Oc Register, 25 Apr. 2026
Verb
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It’s packed with personal emotion expressed through the dynamic world of wrestling, which has always been about storytelling and connecting with a live audience.— Ellise Shafer, Variety, 21 Apr. 2026
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This is not a party place, but one for connecting with family and friends.— Carole Dixon, HollywoodReporter, 21 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Identifying.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.grautoblog.com/thesaurus/identifying. Accessed 25 Apr. 2026.
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