as in to differentiate
to understand or point out the difference in those philistines who seemingly cannot secern artistic depiction of the nude from blatant pornography

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Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for secern
Verb
  • Some teenagers are considering professional certifications and skill-building courses to differentiate themselves and build their resumes.
    Sarah Hernholm, Forbes.com, 25 May 2025
  • Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed more than 53,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which doesn’t differentiate between civilians and combatants in its count.
    Sam Mednick, Christian Science Monitor, 24 May 2025
Verb
  • The headaches typically occur on the same side as the tumor or cyst and can be challenging for healthcare providers to distinguish from a true headache disorder.6 What Are the Symptoms of Chronic Migraine?
    Cathy Nelson, Verywell Health, 3 June 2025
  • Thus, Israel’s defense establishment formulated a war concept that distinguished between terrorists and the civilian population in Gaza and strived to cause significant damage to Hamas, even if not to destroy every last Hamas fighter.
    Assaf Orion, Foreign Affairs, 3 June 2025
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Cite this Entry

“Secern.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/secern. Accessed 6 Jun. 2025.

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