5 uses
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Definition
to notice or understand something — often something that is not obvious
- His smile had a discernible quality now: it was enjoyment.1.4 Part 1 Chapter 4 — The Immovable Movers (81% in)
- Her eyes were fixed, intent in concentration, as if trying to discern something at a great distance.1.5 Part 1 Chapter 5 — The Climax of the D'Anconias (1% in)
- He had a lean face and gray hair that blended in tone with the cold blue of his eyes; somewhere beyond his look of courteous sternness, there was a note of humor, so faint that it vanished if one tried to discern it.1.10 Part 1 Chapter 10 — Wyatt's Torch (83% in)
- The clatter of the metal came in a flow of irregular sounds without discernible rhythm, not like the action of a mechanism, but as if some conscious impulse were behind every sudden, tearing rise that went up and crashed, scattering into the faint moan of gears.2.3 Part 2 Chapter 3 — White Blackmail (86% in)
- The only discernible rule of the discipline had been his order forbidding all questions.3.8 Part 3 Chapter 8 — The Egoist (24% in)
There are no more uses of "discern" in Atlas Shrugged.
Typical Usage
(best examples)