Discern

Name: American Dictionary of the English Language, Vol. 1 - Discern
Author: Noah Webster

DISCERN, v.t. s as z. [L., to separate or distinguish, Gr.]

1. To separate by the eye, or by the understanding. Hence,

2. To distinguish; to see the difference between two or more things; to discriminate; as, to discern the blossom-buds from the leaf-buds of plants.

Discern thou what is thine--Gen 31.

3. To make the difference.

For nothing else discerns the virtue or the vice.

4. To discover; to see; to distinguish by the eye.

I discerned among the youths, a young man void of understanding. Prov 7.

5. To discover by the intellect; to distinguish; hence, to have knowledge of; to judge.

So is my lord the king to discern good and bad. 2 Sam 14.

A wise mans heart discerneth time and judgment. Eccl 8.

DISCERN, v.i.

1. To see or understand the difference; to make distinction; as, to discern between good and evil, truth and falsehood.

2. To have judicial cognizance.

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Chicago: Noah Webster Jr., "Discern," American Dictionary of the English Language, Vol. 1 in An American Dictionary of the English Language, Vol. 1 (New York: S. Converse, 1828), Original Sources, accessed July 3, 2025, http://www.originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=94HIMCB9UW1TTBM.

MLA: Webster, Noah, Jr. "Discern." American Dictionary of the English Language, Vol. 1, in An American Dictionary of the English Language, Vol. 1, New York, S. Converse, 1828, Original Sources. 3 Jul. 2025. http://www.originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=94HIMCB9UW1TTBM.

Harvard: Webster, N, 'Discern' in American Dictionary of the English Language, Vol. 1. cited in 1828, An American Dictionary of the English Language, Vol. 1, S. Converse, New York. Original Sources, retrieved 3 July 2025, from http://www.originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=94HIMCB9UW1TTBM.