recognize

[ rek-uhg-nahyz ]

/ ˈrɛk əgˌnaɪz /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR recognize ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object), rec·og·nized, rec·og·niz·ing.

to identify as something or someone previously seen, known, etc.: He had changed so much that one could scarcely recognize him.

to identify from knowledge of appearance or characteristics: I recognized him from the description. They recognized him as a fraud.

to perceive as existing or true; realize: to be the first to recognize a fact.

to acknowledge as the person entitled to speak at a particular time: The Speaker recognized the congressman from Maine.

to acknowledge formally as entitled to treatment as a political unit: The United States promptly recognized Israel.

to acknowledge or accept formally a specified factual or legal situation: to recognize a successful revolutionary regime as the de facto government of the country.

to acknowledge or treat as valid: to recognize a claim.

to acknowledge acquaintance with, as by a greeting, handshake, etc.

to show appreciation of (achievement, service, merit, etc.), as by some reward, public honor, or the like.

Law. to acknowledge (an illegitimate child) as one's own.

Biochemistry, Immunology. to bind with, cleave, or otherwise react to (another substance) as a result of fitting its molecular shape or a portion of its shape.

Also especially British, rec·og·nise.

Origin of recognize

1425–75; recogn(ition) + -ize; replacing late Middle English racunnysen, recognisen < Old French reconuiss-, stem of reconuistre < Latin recognōscere, equivalent to re- re- + cognōscere to know¹; see cognition

SYNONYMS FOR recognize

3 acknowledge, appreciate, understand, grant, concede.

SEE SYNONYMS FOR recognize ON THESAURUS.COM

OTHER WORDS FROM recognize

rec·og·niz·a·ble

[rek-uhg-nahy-zuh-buhl, rek-uhg-nahy-] /ˈrɛk əgˌnaɪ zə bəl, ˌrɛk əgˈnaɪ-/, adjective rec·og·niz·a·bil·i·ty, noun rec·og·niz·a·bly, adverb rec·og·niz·er, noun

non·rec·og·nized, adjective pre·rec·og·nize, verb (used with object), pre·rec·og·nized, pre·rec·og·niz·ing. qua·si-rec·og·nized, adjective un·rec·og·niz·a·ble, adjective un·rec·og·niz·a·bly, adverb un·rec·og·nized, adjective un·rec·og·niz·ing, adjective well-rec·og·nized, adjective

Words nearby recognize

reclusion, reco-reco, recognition, recognition factor, recognizance, recognize, recognizee, recognizor, recoil, recoil escapement, recoil-operated

Example sentences from the Web for unrecognized

Sykes suspects that the hairs come from either an unrecognized bear species, or an unknown hybrid of polar bear and brown bear.

Sorry Bigfoot Truthers: Yetis Aren’t Real |Elizabeth Picciuto |July 3, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
Another crucial difference is that the Veneto vote is non-binding, because it is unrecognized by the central government in Rome.

Putin TV Wants You to Think Italy Is a Bigger Story Than Crimea |James Kirchick |March 18, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
The Prawer-Begin bill implies that the Bedouins in these unrecognized villages are squatters.

Jewish Groups, American Rabbis Call on Israel to Withdraw Bedouin Displacement Plan |Mira Sucharov |November 19, 2013 |DAILY BEAST
Unrecognized religious groups cannot send chaplains to prisons or hospitals.

In Italy, Religious Minorities Struggle (Vainly) for Official Recognition |Anna Momigliano |November 14, 2013 |DAILY BEAST

A new biography by A. Scott Berg makes the case for Woodrow Wilson as an unrecognized great American president.

A Noble Failure: Woodrow Wilson’s Presidency Considered |Michael Kazin |September 8, 2013 |DAILY BEAST
In some unrecognized fashion, I had done my best to drive him away.

The Door Through Space |Marion Zimmer Bradley
She was conscious of the strong interest she felt in the man before her; but the fact that she loved him was yet unrecognized.

Hatchie, the Guardian Slave; or, The Heiress of Bellevue |Warren T. Ashton
Then, being dissatisfied, he went to the unrecognized teachers, the enthusiasts and the "cranks" of a hundred schools.

The Book of Life: Vol. I Mind and Body; Vol. II Love and Society |Upton Sinclair
A final farewell, unrecognized for the last parting that it was.

The Short Life |Francis Donovan
The magically spoken lines of Shakespeare became as so much unfelt, unrecognized, distant sounding jargon.

Turns about Town |Robert Cortes Holliday

British Dictionary definitions for unrecognized (1 of 2)

unrecognized

unrecognised

/ (ʌnˈrɛkəɡˌnaɪzd) /

adjective

not recognized or identified hitherto unrecognized planets

not given formal acknowledgment of legal status the unrecognized Communist Workers' Party

British Dictionary definitions for unrecognized (2 of 2)

recognize

recognise

/ (ˈrɛkəɡˌnaɪz) /

verb (tr)

to perceive (a person, creature, or thing) to be the same as or belong to the same class as something previously seen or known; know again

to accept or be aware of (a fact, duty, problem, etc) to recognize necessity

to give formal acknowledgment of the status or legality of (a government, an accredited representative, etc)

mainly US and Canadian to grant (a person) the right to speak in a deliberative body, debate, etc

to give a token of thanks for (a service rendered, etc)

to make formal acknowledgment of (a claim, etc)

to show approval or appreciation of (something good or pleasing)

to acknowledge or greet (a person), as when meeting by chance

(intr) mainly US to enter into a recognizance

Derived forms of recognize

recognizable or recognisable, adjective recognizability or recognisability, noun recognizably or recognisably, adverb recognizer or recogniser, noun

Word Origin for recognize

C15: from Latin recognoscere to know again, from re- + cognoscere to know, ascertain

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

recognize

verb (used with object), rec·og·nized, rec·og·niz·ing.

Origin of recognize

SYNONYMS FOR recognize

OTHER WORDS FROM recognize

Words nearby recognize

Example sentences from the Web for unrecognized

British Dictionary definitions for unrecognized (1 of 2)

unrecognised

adjective

British Dictionary definitions for unrecognized (2 of 2)

recognise

verb (tr)

Derived forms of recognize

Word Origin for recognize

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

recognize

verb (used with object), rec·og·nized, rec·og·niz·ing.

Origin of recognize

SYNONYMS FOR recognize

OTHER WORDS FROM recognize

Words nearby recognize

Words related to unrecognized

Example sentences from the Web for unrecognized

(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []) .push({}); British Dictionary definitions for unrecognized (1 of 2)

unrecognised

adjective

British Dictionary definitions for unrecognized (2 of 2)

recognise

verb (tr)

Derived forms of recognize

Word Origin for recognize

British Dictionary definitions for unrecognized (1 of 2)