to know who or what someone or something is because you have seen, heard, or experienced them before
I recognized my old teacher across the crowded airport terminal.
Do you recognize the song that's playing on the radio?
✦ From Middle French reconoistre, from Latin recognoscere meaning “to know again”.
to accept that something is true, legal, or exists
Many countries now recognize the new government.
The school will not recognize that online certificate.
✦ Same root as the identifying sense, later broadened to legal and abstract acknowledgment.
to formally praise or reward someone for their work or success
The ceremony will recognize outstanding community volunteers.
The award recognized her years of research.
✦ Sense developed in the 19th century from acknowledging merit to publicly honoring it.
