Discerning — meaning, pronunciation & more

Definition

detect with the senses

having or revealing keen insight and good judgment

Pronunciation

🇺🇸American English

/dˈaʊnmoʊst/

🇬🇧British English

/dɪsˈɜːnɪŋ/

🇮🇳Indian English

/dɪsˈɜːnɪŋ/

3 syllables Say it as /dˈaʊnmoʊst/.

Examples

The fleeing convicts were picked out of the darkness by the watchful prison guards
I can't make out the faces in this photograph
a discerning critic

Synonyms & Antonyms

Synonyms

discreet distinguish spot tell apart recognise discern apprehensive pick out make out recognize

Antonyms

undiscerning

Parts of Speech

verb	detect with the senses “The fleeing convicts were picked out of the darkness by the watchful prison guards”
adjective	having or revealing keen insight and good judgment “a discerning critic”
adjective	unobtrusively perceptive and sympathetic “a discerning editor”
adjective	quick to understand; - Nathaniel Hawthorne “a kind and apprehensive friend”
adjective	able to make or detect effects of great subtlety; sensitive “discerning taste”

Word Forms

discernible	adjective	capable of being perceived clearly
discernment	noun	perception of that which is obscure
discreetness	noun	subtly skillful handling of a situation
apprehend	verb	get the meaning of something

Around the World

Europe

🇩🇪German

anspruchsvoll

mit den Sinnen erkennen

🇫🇷French

discernant

détecter avec les sens

🇪🇸Spanish

perspicaz

detectar con los sentidos

🇮🇹Italian

discernente

individuare con i sensi

🇳🇱Dutch

onderscheidend

detecteren met de zintuigen

🇵🇹Portuguese

perspicaz

detectar com os sentidos

🇷🇺Russian

проницательный

обнаружить с помощью органов чувств

India

🇮🇳Hindi

विवेकी

इंद्रियों से पता लगाएं

🇧🇩Bengali

বিচক্ষণ

ইন্দ্রিয় দিয়ে সনাক্ত করা

🇮🇳Tamil

பகுத்தறியும்

புலன்களைக் கொண்டு கண்டறியவும்

🇮🇳Telugu

వివేచనగల

ఇంద్రియాలతో గుర్తించండి

🇮🇳Marathi

विवेकी

इंद्रियांनी शोधा

🇮🇳Gujarati

સમજદાર

ઇન્દ્રિયોથી શોધો

🇮🇳Kannada

ವಿವೇಚನಾಶೀಲ

ಇಂದ್ರಿಯಗಳಿಂದ ಕಂಡುಹಿಡಿಯಿರಿ

🇮🇳Malayalam

വിവേകമുള്ള

ഇന്ദ്രിയങ്ങൾ കൊണ്ട് കണ്ടുപിടിക്കുക

🇮🇳Punjabi

ਸਮਝਦਾਰ

ਇੰਦਰੀਆਂ ਨਾਲ ਪਤਾ ਲਗਾਓ

🇵🇰Urdu

سمجھدار

حواس کے ساتھ پتہ لگانا

East & Southeast Asia

🇨🇳Chinese

挑剔的

用感官检测

🇯🇵Japanese

目の肥えた

感覚で検知する

🇰🇷Korean

식별력 있는 사람들

감각으로 감지하다

🇻🇳Vietnamese

sáng suốt

phát hiện bằng giác quan

🇹🇭Thai

ฉลาด

ตรวจจับได้ด้วยประสาทสัมผัส

🇮🇩Indonesian

cerdas

deteksi dengan indra

🇵🇭Filipino

maunawain

tuklasin gamit ang mga pandama

🇲🇾Malay

arif

mengesan dengan pancaindera

Middle East

🇸🇦Arabic

المميزين

كشف مع الحواس

🇮🇷Persian

متفکر

با حواس تشخیص دهید

🇹🇷Turkish

anlayışlı

duyularla tespit etmek

🇮🇱Hebrew

נָבוֹן

לזהות עם החושים

Test Yourself1 / 3

What is the primary definition of the word 'discerning'?

The primary meaning of 'discerning' is 'detect with the senses'.

Which of the following sentences uses the word 'discerning' in a grammatically correct way?

Using 'discerning' in a noun/adjective form makes the first sentence correct.

In which domain is the word 'discerning' most likely to appear as standard vocabulary?

'discerning' is a standard word used primarily in general literature and formal communications.

Community Poll1 / 6

How often do you encounter the word 'discerning' in your daily reading?

Very Often

Occasionally

Rarely

Never

Do you find 'discerning' easy to spell?

Yes, very easy

Somewhat easy

A bit confusing

Extremely hard

In your opinion, does the word 'discerning' have a positive, neutral, or gloomy tone?

Positive

Neutral

Gloomy

Vibrant

Which age group is most likely to use 'discerning' in regular conversations?

Kids (3-12)

Teens (13-19)

Adults (20-60)

Seniors (60+)

How likely are you to use 'discerning' in a professional email?

Very likely

Somewhat likely

Not very likely

Never

Would you classify 'discerning' as formal, casual, or slang?

Formal

Casual

Slang

Archaic

Pick an option to see how others voted