differentiate (someone or something) from (someone or something)
1. To distinguish one person or thing from someone or something else. I have a very hard time differentiating the Westie from the Cairn Terrier—they just look the same to me. The ubiquity and influence of social media has made it really difficult to differentiate fact from fiction these days. Don't feel bad if you can't differentiate Lisa from Grace—they are very much identical twins.
2. To make multiple people or things noticeably different. We hung floral garlands to differentiate the wedding area from the reception area. On important school days, the kids on Student Council wear a special sash to differentiate them from the other students. Yeah, I'm pretty sure the poufy white dress will differentiate the bride from her bridesmaids—just a hunch!
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.
differentiate (someone or something) from (someone or something else)
1. to recognize the difference between people and things; to tell the difference between people and things. How do you differentiate this one from that one? Can you differentiate Bill from Bob?
2. to make people and things different. I will differentiate this one from that one by painting this one red. The twins' mother used different-colored clothing to differentiate Bill from Bob.
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.