discrimination

noun

(uncountable, countable, sometimes with "against") Differential treatment of an individual or group to their disadvantage; treatment or consideration based on class or category rather than individual merit; partiality; prejudice; bigotry.

(uncountable, countable) Discernment, the act of discriminating, discerning, distinguishing, noting or perceiving differences between things, with the intent to understand rightly and make correct decisions.

(uncountable) The quality of being discriminating; acute discernment, especially in matters of good taste.

(countable, obsolete) That which discriminates; a distinguishing mark, a characteristic.

Roots

disdis- · Latin · apart, not crimen-crimin · Latin · charge, judgment

Synonyms for discrimination

favoritismn prejudicen racismn sexismn bigotryn biasn inequityn unfairnessn inequalityn segregationn racialismn partialityn

Synonyms & related words for discrimination

Find synonyms, related words, and the definition of discrimination — including favoritism, prejudice, racism, sexism, bigotry, bias. Dendril is a free visual thesaurus that shows them on an interactive map where stronger matches sit closer to the center — no signup, no ads.

Words related to discrimination

Explore words related to discrimination — words associated with it, words that go with it, and its nearest matches in meaning. Related words include nondiscrimination, indiscrimination, nondiscriminatory, discriminatingly, discriminatory, discriminates, discriminated, ableism. Click any word to make it the center of the map and keep exploring the web of connections.

Synonyms for discrimination

Common synonyms for discrimination include favoritism, prejudice, racism, sexism, bigotry, bias, inequity, unfairness — words that share a close meaning. Hover or tap any word on the map for its definition and part of speech.

Where does discrimination come from?

The word discrimination breaks down into 2 roots of Latin origin: dis-, from Latin dis (“apart, not”); and -crimin, from Latin crimen (“charge, judgment”). Explore each root to see other English words built from the same source.