Word.ws English Dictionary

differentiated

differentiated is the simple past and past participle of differentiate.

Adjective

differentiated (comparative more differentiated, superlative most differentiated)

  1. That has taken on a specialized form and function.
  2. (figuratively) Making fine distinctions.
    • “I am aware that this type of comparison, especially in Germany, is quickly seen as relativising the Holocaust. That’s why it’s so important to me that such a differentiated and intelligent thinker like Arendt didn’t shy away from this comparison,” Gessen told the newspaper.2023 December 14, Kate Connolly, quoting Masha Gessen, “Award ceremony suspended after writer compares Gaza to Nazi-era Jewish ghettos”, in The Guardian, →ISSN

Meaning of differentiate

Verb

differentiate (third-person singular simple present differentiates, present participle differentiating, simple past and past participle differentiated)

  1. (transitive) To modify so as to create a difference or distinction.
    • A humble instance of Ablaut may be quoted which took place in the seventeenth century, when the word then was differentiated into the two forms then and than.1873, John Earle, The Philology of the English Tongue, second edition, page 128
    Synonyms:
    change
  2. (transitive) To show or be the difference or distinction between things.
    • What differentiates an alligator from a crocodile?
    Synonyms:
    differentialize
  3. (transitive) To recognize as different or distinct.
    • How do you differentiate a fake smile from a genuine one?
    Antonyms:
    conflate
  4. (transitive) To calculate the derivative of a function.
  5. (transitive) To calculate the differential of a function of multiple variables.
  6. (intransitive) To perceive the difference between things; to discriminate.
    • he refused to instruct that actual intent to harm or recklessness had to be found before punitive damages could be awarded, or that a verdict for respondent should differentiate between compensatory and punitive damages.1964, New York Times v. Sullivan
    Synonyms:
    differentialize

See all 9 meanings of differentiate

Antonyms of differentiated

Forms of differentiated

comparativemore differentiated
superlativemost differentiated

Words formed from differentiated

Questions about differentiated

What does differentiated mean?
Differentiated means that has taken on a specialized form and function.
What is differentiated the simple past and past participle of?
Differentiated is the simple past and past participle of differentiate.
What part of speech is differentiated?
Differentiated is an adjective.

Words near differentiated in the dictionary

  1. differentialy
  2. differentiant
  3. differentiants
  4. differentiatable
  5. differentiate
  6. differentiated
  7. differentiatedly
  8. differentiatedness
  9. differentiates
  10. differentiating
  11. differentiation

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: differentiated (page history and authors); differentiate (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Cite this entry: “differentiated.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/differentiated. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.