US /dɪˈsɝn/ UK /dɪˈsɜːn/
verb

Meanings

  1. 1
    verb

    to perceive or recognize something, often with difficulty

    In the fog she could barely discern the outline of the shore.

Thesaurus

Synonyms
Opposites
Word family
Forms discerningundiscerning
Derived forms discernmentdiscerniblediscerning

Etymology

From Old French discerner, from Latin discernere ('to separate, distinguish'), from dis- ('apart') plus cernere ('to sift, separate, perceive').

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