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📕 rednote ID(小红书号)：3881567312

Recognize: Definition, Usage & Common Mistakes (2 meaning)

Meaning 1：identify (recognize)

recognize 🔊

/ˈrek.əɡ.naɪz/

vt.

to know who someone is or what something is because you've seen or met them before.

Illustration of a person recognizing an old friend in a crowded station, showing surprise and joy.

identify 🔊

➕

/aɪˈden.tə.faɪ/

vt.

To perceive someone or something as known or familiar from past experience, usually by sight or sound.

📁 Category：Social Roles 🔖 Level：Beginner

📘 Details & Usage

📖 Root Explanation

From Latin 'recognoscere': 're-' (again) + 'cognoscere' (to know, learn), literally 'to know again'.

💡 Mnemonic

Think 'RE-COGNIZE' as 'RE'-knowing something through your 'COGNITION' (mental process of knowing).

📖 Example

Even after ten years, I could immediately recognize her smile in the old photo. 🔊 A decade had passed, yet her smile in the photograph was instantly familiar to me.

🔗 Collocations

recognize immediately – to identify someone or something without any delay

easily recognize – to identify with little or no difficulty

fail to recognize – to be unable to identify someone or something

🔄 Synonyms

identify (vt.) – to establish the identity of someone or something

know (vt.) – to be familiar with a person, place, or thing

place (vt.) – to remember where you have seen someone before and who they are

🚫 Antonyms

forget (vt.) – to fail to remember someone or something

misidentify (vt.) – to identify someone or something incorrectly

ignore (vt.) – to refuse to take notice of or acknowledge someone

🌱 Derivatives

recognition (n.) – the act of recognizing or the state of being recognized

recognizable (adj.) – able to be recognized or identified

recognized (adj.) – generally accepted or acknowledged

📖 Cultural Story

Derived from Latin, passed through Old French, and entered Middle English. It signifies the formal act of acknowledging truth, status, or validity. Key in legal documents ('recognize a right'), diplomatic relations ('recognize a state'), and daily social interactions (recognizing someone's effort or face).

Meaning 2：acknowledge (recognize)

recognize 🔊

/ˈrek.əɡ.naɪz/

vt.

to accept that something is true, important, or officially valid.

Image of a formal award ceremony, depicting official recognition and public acknowledgment.

acknowledge 🔊

➕

/əkˈnɑː.lɪdʒ/

vt.

To accept or admit the existence, truth, validity, or legality of something, often officially or formally.

📁 Category：Laws & Regulations 🔖 Level：Intermediate

📘 Details & Usage

📖 Example

The government finally agreed to recognize the importance of protecting this ancient forest. 🔊 The authorities at last consented to formally acknowledge the critical need to conserve this primordial woodland.

🔗 Collocations

officially recognize – to give formal acknowledgment or acceptance

legally recognize – to accept as valid or binding under the law

widely recognized – accepted or acknowledged by many people

🔄 Synonyms

acknowledge (vt.) – to accept or admit the existence or truth of something

accept (vt.) – to believe or come to agree that something is true or valid

validate (vt.) – to recognize or affirm the worth or legality of something

🚫 Antonyms

deny (vt.) – to state that something is not true or does not exist

reject (vt.) – to refuse to accept, consider, or acknowledge something

dispute (vt.) – to argue about or question the truth or validity of something

🌱 Derivatives

recognition (n.) – acknowledgment of achievement, status, or validity

recognizable (adj.) – able to be recognized or identified

recognized (adj.) – officially accepted or accredited