discerning

adjective

dis·cern·ing | \ di-ˈsər-niŋ

Definition of discerning

: showing insight and understanding : discriminating a discerning critic

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Examples of discerning in a Sentence

Why should a discerning writer concern himself with such movies as Troy, Alexander, or 300? The answer is that he is uniquely qualified to transmute such trash into illuminating visions of the culturally confused age in which we live. — G. W. Bowersock, New York Review of Books, 6 Nov. 2008 Many of FreshDirect's customers say they are using the service because food shopping in Manhattan can be agonizing. But the question is whether discerning food shoppers will trust it. — Florence Fabricant, New York Times, 6 Nov. 2002 Who reads short stories? one is asked, and I like to think that they are read by men and women in the dentist's office, waiting to be called to the chair; they are read on transcontinental plane trips … they are read by discerning and well-informed men and women who seem to feel that narrative fiction can contribute to our understanding of one another and the sometimes bewildering world around us. — John Cheever, The Story and Its Writer, 1987 She has a discerning eye for good art. a discerning critic of modern art

Recent Examples on the Web

The second represents a more discerning drinker who is willing to pay more and sip it neat, like a drinker of Scotch. — John Kell, Fortune, "Has Mezcal Become Too Big for Its Own Good?," 4 Aug. 2019 But for the more discerning customers — high-end homebuilders and those working on important public buildings — a really first-rate brick man can be hard to find. — Kevin D. Williamson, National Review, "Worker Skills to Pay the Bills," 25 July 2019 The discerning observer recognized that the mountain backdrop was actually in the Yukon. — National Geographic, "In the Alaska-Yukon wilderness, wildlife crime fighters face a daunting task," 25 June 2019 This beautiful home in West Hartford has just about everything a discerning buyer might want. — courant.com, "Property of the Week: 215 South Main Street, West Hartford," 28 June 2019 There ought to be a better way, perhaps with a rapid escalation process from frontline content reviewers to a more discerning panel of experts? — Aaron Pressman, Fortune, "Why Mark Zuckerberg's Not Apologizing For That Fake Nancy Pelosi Video—Data Sheet," 27 June 2019 Barely more than a year old, this restaurant from a pair of fine dining alums impresses with an immaculate five-course tasting menu and a stunning, international wine list that will please even the most discerning palates. — Linda Zavoral, The Mercury News, "Bay Area’s best restaurants ‘where wine is celebrated’," 13 June 2019 For those with more discerning power supply tastes, this UPS delivers square waveform power, not the more succulent pure sine waves that connoisseurs look for. — Ian Paul, PCWorld, "Protect against outages with this $35, six outlet uninterruptible power supply," 9 Oct. 2018 Tencent, China’s biggest tech company by market value, presented online education programs to bring art classes and other resources to rural students around China, and projects to dispel rumors online and teach users to be more discerning. — Time, "French President Emmanuel Macron Takes on Facebook and Other Tech Firms Over Regulation," 25 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'discerning.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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More Definitions for discerning

discerning

adjective

English Language Learners Definition of discerning

: able to see and understand people, things, or situations clearly and intelligently

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discerning

Definition of discerning

Other Words from discerning

Synonyms & Antonyms for discerning

Examples of discerning in a Sentence

First Known Use of discerning

History and Etymology for discerning

English Language Learners Definition of discerning

discerning

Definition of discerning

Other Words from discerning

Synonyms & Antonyms for discerning

Examples of discerning in a Sentence

First Known Use of discerning

History and Etymology for discerning

English Language Learners Definition of discerning

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