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Ostracize vs Discriminate - What's the difference?

ostracize | discriminate |

As verbs the difference between ostracize and discriminate

is that ostracize is to exclude (a person) from society or from a community, by not communicating with (them) or by refusing to acknowledge (their) presence; to refuse to talk to or associate with; to shun while discriminate is to make distinctions.

As an adjective discriminate is

having the difference marked; distinguished by certain tokens.

ostracize

English

Alternative forms

* ostracise (non-Oxford British spelling)

Verb

  • To exclude (a person) from society or from a community, by not communicating with (them) or by refusing to acknowledge (their) presence; to refuse to talk to or associate with; to shun.
  • * 2003 , Cele C. Otnes, Elizabeth Hafkin Pleck, Cinderella Dreams: The Allure of the Lavish Wedding ,
    • Lesbian studies scholar Ramona Oswald has extended this criticism by arguing that traditions such as the bouquet toss and the "singles" table at the wedding reception often marginalize and ostracize lesbians and gays in attendance.
  • * '>citation
  • * 2007 , Petra Hauf and Friedrich Försterling (editors), Making Minds: The shaping of human minds through social context ,
    • Children ostracize' other children in the playground, choosing carefully who they wish to play with. Adults ' ostracize other adults, such as marriage partners using the silent treatment.
  • (lb) To ban a person from the city of (l) for ten years.

    • Related terms

    * ostracism * ostracization, ostracisation * ostracon

    See also

    * cut someone dead * silent treatment

    External links

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    discriminate

    English

    Verb

    (en-verb)
  • To make distinctions.
    • Since he was colorblind he was unable to discriminate between the blue and green bottles.
  • To make decisions based on prejudice.
    • The law prohibits discriminating against people based on their skin color.
  • To set apart as being different; to mark as different; to separate from another by discerning differences; to distinguish.
    • (Cowper)
  • * Barrow
    • To discriminate the goats from the sheep.

    Usage notes

    Due to the strong pejorative connotations of sense of “decide based on prejudice”, care should be taken in using the term in the sense “distinguish, make distinctions”, and this sense is primarily used in formal discourse; synonyms are generally used instead.

    Synonyms

    (make distinctions) * distinguish * differentiate

    Derived terms

    * discriminative * discriminatory

    Related terms

    * discriminant * discrimination * indiscriminate

    Adjective

    (en adjective)
  • Having the difference marked; distinguished by certain tokens.
    • (Francis Bacon)

    External links

    * * ----