distinction
/dɪˈstɪŋkʃən/
distinction noun: that which distinguishes; a single occurrence of a determining factor or feature, the fact of being divided; separation, discrimination.
Noun
distinction (countable and uncountable, plural distinctions)
- That which distinguishes; a single occurrence of a determining factor or feature, the fact of being divided; separation, discrimination.
- The proper course for me, gentlemen of the jury, is to deal first with the earliest charges that have been falsely brought against me, and with my earliest accursers; and then with the later ones. I make this distinction because […]1954, Plato, translated by Hugh Tredennick, “Socrates on Trial: The Apology”, in The Last Days of Socrates (Penguin Classics), Harmondsworth, Middlesex: Penguin Books, →OCLC, page 20
- The act of distinguishing, discriminating; discrimination.
- There is a distinction to be made between resting and slacking.
- We must always make a distinction that right versus wrong is different from legal and illegal.
- A feature that causes someone or something to stand out from others of its type.
- Gedeon Van Rompay had the dubious distinction of being the only Site employee personally hired by Edwin Falkirk, former All Sections Chief and perennial piece of human trash. Lillian had found it easy not to hold this against the man, but only because there were so many other odious things about...2023 September 16, HarryBlank, “Borrowing Trouble”, in SCP Foundation, archived from the original on 15 Jun 2024
- Synonyms:
- cachet
- A feature that causes someone or something to stand out as being better; a mark of honour, rank, eminence or excellence; the quality of being distinguished.
- She had the distinction of meeting the Queen.
- Mother[…]considered that the exclusiveness of Peter's circle was due not to its distinction, but to the fact that it was an inner Babylon of prodigality and whoredom, from which every Kensingtonian held aloof, except on the conventional tip-and-run excursions in pursuit of shopping, tea and...1921, Ben Travers, chapter 2, in A Cuckoo in the Nest, Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, Page & Company, published 1925, →OCLC
distinction meaning in Tamil, Urdu, Bengali and Malayalam
distinction in Tamil
- தனி மதிப்பு, தனிச் சிறப்பு, தனிச் சிறப்புக் குறிப்பு, தனித்துவம், மேன்மை சிறப்பு உயர்விடம்
distinction in Urdu
- distinction; eminence
- رتبہ rutba
distinction in Bengali
- distinction
- বিশেষ biśeś
distinction in Malayalam
- വ്യത്യാസം, വകതിരിവ്, ഭിന്നത, വിവേചനം
More languagesFewer languages
- distinction in Kannada
- ಹಿರಿಮೆ, ಗೆಂಟು, ಹೆಚ್ಚಾಳುತನ, ವೈಶಿಷ್ಟ್ಯ
- distinction in Punjabi
- ਪ੍ਰਤਿਸ਼ਠਾ pratiśṭhā, ویروا vervā
- distinction in Sanskrit
- विशेष viśeṣa
- distinction in Arabic
- تَمْيِيْز tamyīz
Examples of distinction in a sentence
- In spite of these qualifications, the broad distinction between instinct and habit is undeniable.1921, Bertrand Russell, “Lecture II”, in The Analysis of Mind:
- Gedeon Van Rompay had the dubious distinction of being the only Site employee personally hired by Edwin Falkirk, former All Sections Chief and perennial piece of human trash.2023 September 16, HarryBlank, “Borrowing Trouble”, in SCP Foundation, archived from the original on 15 Jun 2024:
- Just about the only metric on which she rated Van Rompay higher than Falkirk was transphobia; the big man made no distinction between varieties of womanhood, feeling superior to all of them equally.2023 September 16, HarryBlank, “Borrowing Trouble”, in SCP Foundation, archived from the original on 15 Jun 2024:
- Leighton Baines, playing with distinction again, sent over a left-wing cross with pace and accuracy.2013 October 15, Daniel Taylor, The Guardian:
Synonyms of distinction
Antonyms
Forms of distinction
| plural | distinctions |
|---|
Origin of distinction
From Middle English distinccioun, from Old French distinction (attested from the 12th century), borrowed from Latin distinctiōnem, action noun of distinguō (“separate, distinguish”). By surface analysis, distinct (“to distinguish”) + -ion. Attested in English from the late 14th century.
Words formed from distinction
Questions about distinction
- What does distinction mean?
- Distinction means that which distinguishes; a single occurrence of a determining factor or feature, the fact of being divided; separation, discrimination.
- What is distinction in Tamil?
- Distinction in Tamil is தனி மதிப்பு, தனிச் சிறப்பு, தனிச் சிறப்புக் குறிப்பு. See Distinction meaning in Tamil.
- How do you use distinction in a sentence?
- In spite of these qualifications, the broad distinction between instinct and habit is undeniable.
- What part of speech is distinction?
- Distinction is a noun.
- How do you pronounce distinction?
- Distinction is pronounced /dɪˈstɪŋkʃən/.
- What is the plural of distinction?
- The plural of distinction is distinctions.
Words near distinction in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: distinction (page history and authors); distinction (Tamil Wiktionary) (page history and authors); رتبہ (Urdu) (page history and authors); বিশেষ (Bengali) (page history and authors); distinction (Malayalam Wiktionary) (page history and authors); distinction (Kannada Wiktionary) (page history and authors); ویروا (Punjabi) (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.
Last updated:
Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-us-distinction.ogg.
Cite this entry: “distinction.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/distinction. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.