Recognition
//ˌɹɛkəɡˈnɪʃən// noun
noun ·Common ·High school level
Definitions
Noun
- 1 The act of recognizing or the condition of being recognized (matching a current observation with a memory of a prior observation of the same entity). uncountable, usually
"He looked at her for ten full minutes before recognition dawned."
- 2 designation by the chair granting a person the right to speak in a deliberative body wordnet
- 3 Acceptance as valid or true. uncountable, usually
"The law was a recognition of their civil rights."
- 4 the process of recognizing something or someone by remembering wordnet
- 5 Official acceptance of the status of a new government by that of another country. uncountable, usually
Show 9 more definitions
- 6 coming to understand something clearly and distinctly wordnet
- 7 Honour, favourable note, or attention. uncountable, usually
"The charity gained plenty of recognition for its efforts, but little money."
- 8 an acceptance (as of a claim) as true and valid wordnet
- 9 The propriety consisting for antibodies to bind to some specific antigens and not to others. uncountable, usually
- 10 approval wordnet
- 11 A return of the feu to the superior. historical, uncountable, usually
- 12 the explicit and formal acknowledgement of a government or of the national independence of a country wordnet
- 13 (biology) the ability of one molecule to attach to another molecule that has a complementary shape wordnet
- 14 the state or quality of being recognized or acknowledged wordnet
Example
More examples"When you speak of a pay-raise before recognition, I am inclined to think you are putting the cart before the horse."
Etymology
From Middle English recognicion, from Middle French recognicion, recognition and its etymon Latin recognitiōnem (accusative of recognitiō), from recognitus, past participle of recognōscere.
Related phrases
More for "recognition"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.