identifying

Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.

Also seen as: identifyings

Sense 1

Meaning · English

Allowing a person or thing to be easily or uniquely distinguished and identified.

Adjective

Examples

identifying characteristic

Usage example from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01)

Sources & notes

Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01 via kaikki.org).

Sense 2

Meaning · English

An act of identification.

Noun

Examples

There are not only these identifyings going on, but also there are distinguishings. For just as in the example above there are identifications of the various extents, there are distinguishings of these extents.

Usage example from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01)

Sources & notes

Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01 via kaikki.org).

Common questions

What does “identifying” mean?

Allowing a person or thing to be easily or uniquely distinguished and identified.

Is “identifying” formal or informal?

No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.