identify JUST WRITTEN FOR YOU
/aɪˈdɛn.tɪ.faɪ/ · i·den·ti·fy
verb
- To establish the identity of someone or something. The biologist was able to identify the rare orchid by its distinctive petals.
- To disclose the identity of someone. The newspaper refused to identify the whistleblower, citing legal protections.
- To establish the taxonomic classification of an organism. Scientists worked for months to identify the newly discovered beetle within the Carabidae family.
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Did you know? The verb ‘identify’ gained a technical meaning in computer science in the 1960s, referring to the process of matching a data pattern to a known signature, a practice still central to modern antivirus software.