<B>distinguish, </B>transitive verb.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>to see or show the difference in; tell apart. <BR> <I>Ex. Can you distinguish cotton cloth from wool?</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>to see or hear clearly; make out plainly. <BR> <I>Ex. On a clear, bright day you can distinguish things far away.</I> (SYN) discern, perceive. <DD><B> 3. </B>to make different; be a special quality or feature of. <BR> <I>Ex. A trunk distinguishes the elephant. Ability to talk distinguishes human beings from the lower animals.</I> (SYN) differentiate, characterize. <DD><B> 4. </B>to make famous or well-known; confer distinction on. <BR> <I>Ex. He distinguished himself by winning three prizes.</I> <DD><B> 5. </B>to separate into different groups; classify. <BR> <I>Ex. Things are commonly distinguished into animal, vegetable, and mineral.</I> <DD><B> 6. </B>(Archaic.) to single out for special attention; honor. <BR> <I>Ex. They who first distinguished you have the best claim to your attention (Samuel Johnson).</I> <DD><I>v.i. </I> to see or show the difference; discriminate. <BR> <I>Ex. You learn to distinguish between right and wrong. The expert had a good eye for distinguishing between a fake and the genuine item.</I> noun <B>distinguisher.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="distinguishability">
<B>distinguishability, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> the quality or state of being distinguishable; distinguishableness. </DL>
<A NAME="distinguishable">
<B>distinguishable, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> that can be distinguished; perceptible. <BR> <I>Ex. Whatever objects are different are distinguishable (David Hume).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="distinguishableness">
<B>distinguishableness, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> the quality or state of being distinguishable. </DL>
<A NAME="distinguishably">
<B>distinguishably, </B>adverb.<DL COMPACT><DD> in a distinguishable manner; perceptibly. </DL>
<A NAME="distinguished">
<B>distinguished, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>famous; well-known. <BR> <I>Ex. a distinguished artist.</I> (SYN) celebrated. <DD><B> 2. </B>looking important or superior. <BR> <I>Ex. Your new suit gives you a distinguished look.</I> </DL>
<A NAME="distinguishedconductmedal">
<B>Distinguished Conduct Medal,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> (British.) a medal awarded to warrant officers, noncommissioned officers, and men for distinguished conduct in the field. (Abbr:) D.C.M. </DL>
<A NAME="distinguishedflyingcross">
<B>Distinguished Flying Cross,</B><DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>(U.S.) a bronze medal for heroism or exceptional service in an aerial flight. <DD><B> 2. </B>(British.) a medal awarded to officers and warrant officers for heroism or exceptional service while flying in combat. (Abbr:) D.F.C. or DFC (no periods). </DL>
<A NAME="distinguishedservicecross">
<B>Distinguished Service Cross,</B><DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>(U.S.) a bronze cross awarded for heroism or exceptional conduct in combat, next in rank to the Medal of Honor. <DD><B> 2. </B>(British.) a similar award in the British Navy. (Abbr:) D.S.C. </DL>
<A NAME="distinguishedservicemedal">
<B>Distinguished Service Medal,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> (U.S.) an award for exceptionally meritorious service to the government in the performance of a duty entailing great responsibility. <BR> <I>Ex. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration awards a Distinguished Service Medal to astronauts.</I> <DD><B> 1. </B>(British.) a medal for distinguished conduct in war. (Abbr:) D.S.M. </DL>
<A NAME="distinguishedserviceorder">
<B>Distinguished Service Order,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> (British.) an order awarded for exceptional services in combat. (Abbr:) D.S.O. </DL>
<A NAME="distinguishing">
<B>distinguishing, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> that distinguishes or makes distinguished. <BR> <I>Ex. a distinguishing characteristic.</I> adv. <B>distinguishingly.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="distinguishment">
<B>distinguishment, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>the act of distinguishing. <DD><B> 2. </B>the state of being distinguished. <DD><B> 3. </B>a thing that distinguishes. </DL>
<A NAME="distort">
<B>distort, </B>transitive verb.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>to pull or twist out of shape; make crooked or ugly; change the normal appearance of. <BR> <I>Ex. Rage distorted his face, making it very ugly.</I> (SYN) contort. <DD><B> 2. </B>(Figurative.) to change from the truth; give a twist or turn to (the mind, thoughts, views). <BR> <I>Ex. The driver distorted the facts of the accident to escape blame. The medium of television can strikingly if unintentionally distort events out of true focus (C. L. Sulzberger).</I> (SYN) misrepresent, falsify. noun <B>distorter.</B> adv. <B>distortingly.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="distorted">
<B>distorted, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>pulled or twisted out of shape; made crooked. <BR> <I>Ex. The detective saw the distorted face of a victim of poison.</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>(Figurative.) misrepresented; falsified. <BR> <I>Ex. He gave a distorted account of his experiences to make a better story.</I> adv. <B>distortedly.</B> noun <B>distortedness.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="distortion">
<B>distortion, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>a distorting; twisting out of shape. <BR> <I>Ex. (Figurative) Exaggeration is a distortion of the truth.</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>the fact or condition of being distorted. <BR> <I>Ex. The sick man's face was in complete distortion.</I> <DD><B> 3. </B>anything distorted. <BR> <I>Ex. His story of the fishing trip was full of distortions.</I> <DD><B> 4. </B>a distorted form or image. <DD><B> 5. </B>(Electronics.) the inaccurate reproduction of a signal by modification of the wave form during amplification or transmission. <BR> <I>Ex. Distortion tends to run somewhat higher [on a cassette tape] than on other media, especially at high frequencies (Charles Lincoln).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="distortional">
<B>distortional, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> of or having to do with distortion. </DL>
<A NAME="distortive">
<B>distortive, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> tending to distort. <BR> <I>Ex. (Figurative.) We know now how distortive it was to talk of the [land] enclosure movement of the eighteenth century as the dispossession of the English peasantry (Manchester Guardian Weekly).</I> </DL>
<B>distract, </B>verb, adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><I>v.t. </I> <B>1. </B>to draw away (the mind or attention). <BR> <I>Ex. Noise distracts my attention from studying.</I> (SYN) divert. <DD><B> 2. </B>to confuse; disturb; bewilder. <BR> <I>Ex. Several people talking at once distract a listener.</I> (SYN) perplex. <DD><B> 3. </B>to put out of one's mind; make insane. <BR> <I>Ex. The dog was distracted with fear.</I> (SYN) craze, derange. <DD><B> 4. </B>(Obsolete.) to draw apart; divide. <DD><I>adj. </I> (Archaic.) distracted. noun <B>distracter.</B> </DL>
<B>distractibility, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> the state or quality of being distractible. <BR> <I>Ex. We're developing a generation with a tremendous need for distractibility (Wall Street Journal).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="distractible">
<B>distractible, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> that can be distracted. </DL>
<A NAME="distracting">
<B>distracting, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> that distracts. <BR> <I>Ex. Noises are distracting to a person trying to study.</I> adv. <B>distractingly.</B> noun <B>distractingness.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="distraction">
<B>distraction, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>the act of drawing away the mind or attention. <DD><B> 2. </B>a thing that draws away the mind or attention. <BR> <I>Ex. Noise is a distraction when you are trying to study.</I> <DD><B> 3. </B>a confusion of mind; disturbance of thought. <BR> <I>Ex. The mother of the lost children scarcely knew what she was doing in her distraction.</I> <DD><B> 4. </B>relief from continued thought, grief, or effort; amusement. <BR> <I>Ex. Movies and television are popular distractions. She needed some mental distraction after the long strain.</I> (SYN) relaxation, diversion. <DD><B> 5. </B>insanity; madness. <DD><B> 6. </B>confusion; perplexity; dissension. <BR><I>expr. <B>to distraction,</B> </I>beyond endurance; to the point of madness. <BR> <I>Ex. Your constant whining is driving me to distraction.</I> </DL>
<A NAME="distractive">
<B>distractive, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> distracting; tending to distract. <BR> <I>Ex. Noisy students have a distractive effect on those who want to study.</I> </DL>
<A NAME="distrain">
<B>distrain,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> (Law.) <DD><I>v.t. </I> <B>1. </B>to seize (goods) for unpaid rent or other debts. <BR> <I>Ex. The landlord distrained his tenants' trunks.</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>to levy a distress upon (a person). <DD><I>v.i. </I> to levy a distress. <BR> <I>Ex. Our goods were distrained upon in lieu of rent (New Statesman).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="distrainable">
<B>distrainable, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> (Law.) liable to be distrained. </DL>
<A NAME="distrainer">
<B>distrainer</B> or <B>distrainor, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> (Law.) a person who distrains. </DL>
<A NAME="distrainment">
<B>distrainment, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> (Law.) <DD><B> 1. </B>the act of distraining. <DD><B> 2. </B>the state of being distrained. </DL>
<A NAME="distraint">
<B>distraint, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> (Law.) the act of distraining; distress. </DL>
<A NAME="distrait">
<B>distrait, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> not paying attention; absent-minded. <BR> <I>Ex. She answered their questions in a distrait manner, her thoughts far away.</I> </DL>
<A NAME="distraite">
<B>distraite, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> (French.) the feminine form of <B>distrait.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="distraught">
<B>distraught, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>in a state of mental conflict and confusion; distracted; bewildered. <BR> <I>Ex. The lost child wandered about distraught with fear. The death of Jefferson's wife in September, 1782, left him stunned and distraught.</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>crazed. <BR> <I>Ex. Distraught from grief, she flung herself overboard.</I> adv. <B>distraughtly.</B> noun <B>distraughtness.</B> </DL>
