recognize

Meanings

1. 1
   verb

   To know someone or something because you have seen or met them before.

   I recognized his face immediately, although his voice was different.

2. 2
   verb

   To accept or admit that something is true, important, or valid.

   Slavery is widely recognized as immoral.

3. 3
   verb

   To officially accept the existence or legal status of something.

   Several countries quickly recognized the new government.

4. 4
   verb

   To show official appreciation for someone, as with an award.

   His services were recognized with a special award.

Appears in

Simplified etymology

Recognize comes from Latin recognoscere, literally “to know again,” formed from re-, “again,” and cognoscere, “to know.” Latin had already extended the word to meanings such as “examine,” “acknowledge,” and “certify,” and it entered English in these legal senses in the late Middle Ages. The familiar sense “identify by a distinctive feature” dates from the early 18th century.

Borrowed from Middle French reconoistre, from Old French reconoistre, from Latin recognoscere, first attested in the 16th century. Displaced native English acknow (“to recognize, perceive as”), compare German erkennen and Swedish erkänna. Latin had rare recognizare (“to try by jury”).

Topics

External links

• Google Images
• Cambridge Dictionary
• Wiktionary