Discerning — Meaning, Definition & Synonyms

adjective verb /di-ˈsər-niŋ/ dis·cern·ing

Meaning & Definition of Discerning

Discerning (adjective)

  1. showing insight and understanding, discriminating

Discerning (adjective) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. having or showing deep understanding and intelligent application of knowledge

    "a discerning critic of modern art"

    similar: insightful, perceptive, prudent, sagacious, sage, sapient, wise
    related: acute, penetrating, percipient, perspicacious, experienced, discriminating, discriminative, brainy, bright, brilliant, clever, intelligent, keen, nimble, quick, quick-witted, smart, cerebral, erudite, knowledgeable, learned, literate, scholarly, astute, clearheaded, piercing, sharp, shrewd, contemplative, reflective, thoughtful
    opposite: unperceptive, unwise
    near: dense, dull, obtuse, purblind, woodenheaded, brainless, dumb, feebleminded, foolish, idiotic, imbecile, knuckleheaded, moronic, silly, simple, slow, slow-witted, stupid, thoughtless, unintelligent, witless, undiscriminating

Discerning (verb) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. to make note of (something) through the use of one's eyes

    "barely able to discern the garden gate through the mist"

    similar: beholding, catching, descrying, distinguishing, espying, eyeing, looking (at), noticing, noting, observing, perceiving, regarding, remarking, seeing, sighting, spotting, spying, viewing, witnessing, getting a load of (slang), laying eyes on, setting eyes on
    related: identifying, making out, picking out, picking up, attending (to), considering, heeding, marking, minding, studying, watching, examining, inspecting, scanning, scrutinizing, surveying, glancing (at), glimpsing, peering (at)
    near: disregarding, ignoring, neglecting, overpassing, passing over, missing, overlooking

  2. to understand or point out the difference in

    "too young to discern between right and wrong"

    similar: differencing, differentiating, discriminating, distinguishing, secerning, separating
    related: contradistinguishing, comprehending, grasping, knowing, understanding, dividing, parting, severing, demarcating, marking (off), setting off
    opposite: confusing, mistaking, mixing (up)
    near: confounding, lumping (together), mingling

  3. to have a clear idea of

    "we're still trying to discern the meaning of that cryptic remark"

    similar: appreciating, apprehending, assimilating, beholding, catching, catching on (to), cognizing, compassing, comprehending, conceiving, cottoning (to or on to), deciphering, decoding, digging, getting, grasping, grokking, intuiting, knowing, making, making out, perceiving, recognizing, registering, savvying, seeing, seizing, sensing, tumbling (to), twigging, understanding, picking up on
    related: absorbing, digesting, taking in, realizing, fathoming, penetrating, piercing
    opposite: missing
    near: misapprehending, misconceiving, misconstruing, misinterpreting, misperceiving, misreading, mistaking, misunderstanding

Related Entry: Discern (verb)

Discern is a different word from Discerning. The synonyms below are for discern, not for discerning.

  1. to make note of (something) through the use of one's eyes

    "barely able to discern the garden gate through the mist"

    similar: behold, catch, descry, distinguish, espy, eye, look (at), note, notice, observe, perceive, regard, remark, see, sight, spot, spy, view, witness, get a load of (slang), lay eyes on, set eyes on
    related: identify, make out, pick out, pick up, attend (to), consider, heed, mark, mind, study, watch, examine, inspect, scan, scrutinize, survey, glance (at), glimpse, peer (at)
    near: disregard, ignore, neglect, overpass, pass over, miss, overlook

  2. to understand or point out the difference in

    "too young to discern between right and wrong"

    similar: difference, differentiate, discriminate, distinguish, secern, separate
    related: contradistinguish, comprehend, grasp, know, understand, divide, part, sever, demarcate, mark (off), set off
    opposite: confuse, mistake, mix (up)
    near: confound, lump (together), mingle

  3. to have a clear idea of

    "we're still trying to discern the meaning of that cryptic remark"

    similar: appreciate, apprehend, assimilate, behold, catch, catch on (to), cognize, compass, comprehend, conceive, cotton (to or on to), decipher, decode, dig, get, grasp, grok, intuit, know, make, make out, perceive, recognize, register, savvy, see, seize, sense, tumble (to), twig, understand, pick up on
    related: absorb, digest, take in, realize, fathom, penetrate, pierce
    opposite: miss
    near: misapprehend, misconceive, misconstrue, misinterpret, misperceive, misread, mistake, misunderstand

Synonyms, Thesaurus & Another Word for Discerning

The most common words with a similar meaning to Discerning:

Slang: getting a load of
insightful, perceptive, prudent, sagacious, sage, sapient, wise, beholding, catching, descrying, distinguishing, espying, eyeing, looking (at), noticing, noting, observing, perceiving, regarding, remarking, seeing, sighting, spotting, spying, viewing, witnessing, differencing, differentiating, discriminating, secerning, separating, appreciating, apprehending, assimilating, catching on (to), cognizing, compassing, comprehending, conceiving, cottoning (to or on to)

Antonyms & Opposite Words for Discerning

Words with the opposite meaning of Discerning:

unperceptive, unwise, confusing, mistaking, mixing (up), missing

Related Words for Discerning

acute, penetrating, percipient, perspicacious, experienced, discriminative, brainy, bright, brilliant, clever, intelligent, keen, nimble, quick, quick-witted, smart, cerebral, erudite, knowledgeable, learned, literate, scholarly, astute, clearheaded, piercing, sharp, shrewd, contemplative, reflective, thoughtful

Near Antonyms of Discerning

dense, dull, obtuse, purblind, woodenheaded, brainless, dumb, feebleminded, foolish, idiotic, imbecile, knuckleheaded, moronic, silly, simple, slow, slow-witted, stupid, thoughtless, unintelligent, witless, undiscriminating, disregarding, ignoring, neglecting, overpassing, passing over, overlooking, confounding, lumping (together)

Word Forms of Discerning

Derived words: discerningly (adverb)

Origin & Etymology of Discerning

from present participle of discern

First known use: 1589

Vocabulary Lists & Topics for Discerning

Frequently Asked Questions about Discerning

What does "Discerning" mean?

"Discerning" means showing insight and understanding, discriminating. As an an adjective and a verb, it is defined as: showing insight and understanding, discriminating. It has 4 distinct senses.

What is another word for "Discerning"?

Other words for "Discerning" include insightful, perceptive, prudent, sagacious, sage, sapient, wise and beholding. The best synonym depends on which meaning of "Discerning" you intend.

What are different ways to say "Discerning"?

There are 122 words and phrases with a similar meaning to "Discerning". Common alternatives include insightful, perceptive, prudent, sagacious, sage, sapient, wise, beholding, catching and descrying.

What is the opposite of "Discerning"?

Antonyms of "Discerning" include unperceptive, unwise, confusing, mistaking, mixing (up) and missing. Near antonyms include dense, dull, obtuse and purblind.

How do you use "Discerning" in a sentence?

Examples of "Discerning" in a sentence: "a discerning critic of modern art"; "barely able to discern the garden gate through the mist"; "too young to discern between right and wrong".

Is "Discerning" a noun, verb, or adjective?

"Discerning" can be used as an adjective and a verb, depending on the context.

Is "Discerning" useful for IELTS, TOEFL, and other English exams?

As a C2-level word, "Discerning" is typical of Cambridge C2 Proficiency (CPE), IELTS band 8.5–9.0, TOEFL iBT 114–120, PTE Academic 85–90. Advanced words like this are also useful for the GRE, SAT, GMAT, and LSAT.

How do you pronounce "Discerning"?

"Discerning" is pronounced /di-ˈsər-niŋ/ and divided into syllables as dis·cern·ing.