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Glite Dictionary
🛍️ To choose 👀 To identify
to pick out

to pick out

64 3.0
Notice a sound or sight among other things
  • phrasal verb
  • /pɪk aʊt/
translation icon : distinguir
  • He can easily pick out the rare bird among the common ones in the park.
  • pick out details

It's subtle to pick out, but see if you can spot it.

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Examples

  • Humans can see the whole picture and pick out that path immediately.

    Academic text (2009)

  • I look at the beach and try to pick out her car, but can't find it.

    Fiction book (1992)

  • - Did you pick it out yourself?

    Prom Night (2008)

  • It's difficult to pick out anybody in particular.

    The Passionate Friends (1949)

  • l could pick you two out of a million.

    Swiss Miss (1938)

  • We stand up a group of men, see if you can pick out the man you saw leaving the vacant lot.

    Dragnet (1954)

  • His eyes were fine and could pick out a small bird in a thick bush.

    Fiction book (1993)

  • Raising his head, he picked out Doctor Yakoubian in the center of the crowd.

    Fiction book (1994)

  • Through the commotion, his ear had picked out a familiar name spoken at a nearby table.

    Fiction book (1992)

  • You're able to coherently pick out what's good and what's bad.

Synonyms

to recognize
vsto pick out
  • US
∞ 1.4

To see or hear someone and know who they are

relies on prior experience rather than choosing among a group
to pick up
vsto pick out
∞ 2.6

To learn or notice something often by chance

is more about deliberate selection from a group than accidental detection
to spot
vsto pick out
576 2.1

To notice someone or something, especially when it is hard

focuses on selecting one from a group rather than merely finding it
to distinguish
vsto pick out
177 3.1

To notice differences between things or people

is about selecting one by noting differences among similar items
to pick up on
vsto pick out
142 3.9

To notice something that is not obvious

is focused on sensory selection among many rather than inferring hidden meanings
to make out
vsto pick out
109 4.6

To see, hear, or understand something when it is hard

focuses on selecting among others rather than merely coping with poor perception
to discern
vsto pick out
70 5.8

To notice something that is hard to see or hear

focuses on choosing one from several rather than slow careful perception
to sniff out
vsto pick out
  • Informal
15 4.0

Find something by searching, often by smell

focuses on identifying among items rather than actively searching with smell
to scent out
vsto pick out
5.6

To find something by smell or by careful searching

is about choosing by general senses among others rather than relying on smell

Antonyms

to ignore
∞ 1.0

Choose not to pay attention to someone or something

to miss
518 1.7

To not notice or hear something important

How Easy

to notice
∞ 1.0
to recognize
  • US
∞ 1.4
to pick out
64 3.0
to identify
∞ 1.8
to spot
576 2.1

Surface Forms

pick out infinitive
picked out past
picked out past participle
picking out present participle
picks out third person singular

Morphology

pick + out

The meaning 'to select or choose' is directly derivable from combining 'pick' (to choose) with the particle 'out' which signals selection away from a set or group; the compositional relation is straightforward. This verb+particle pattern is common and cross-linguistically accessible, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will reliably infer the meaning.

Etymology

The verb pick out paints a clear picture: you use your eyes or ears to pull one thing from a crowd, like hearing your friend's voice at a noisy party. So, to pick something out came to mean 'to notice or identify' one person or thing among others.