identification

/aɪˈdɛntəfəˌkeɪʃən/

/aɪdɛntɪfɪˈkeɪʃən/

Other forms: identifications

Identification is what you show when someone wants proof of who you are. When you get pulled over by a cop for speeding, you better have your driver’s license on you as your form of identification!

Identification isn’t just the card or passport you carry around in your wallet to prove who you are to others. You can also have an identification with a person if you share common beliefs, traditions, or values; then you can say that you identify with that person. Identification can also mean the process of recognizing or identifying something. You may have to wait to adopt that stray dog until the pound has put the pooch through an identification process, trying to see if he already belongs to another family.

Definitions of identification

1. noun

   the act of designating or identifying something
   synonyms: designation

   types:

   diagnosing, diagnosis

   identifying the nature or cause of some phenomenon

   blood typing

   determining a person's blood type by serological methods

   medical diagnosis

   identification of a disease from its symptoms

   uranalysis, urinalysis

   (medicine) the chemical analysis of urine (for medical diagnosis)

   type of:

   determination, finding

   the act of determining the properties of something, usually by research or calculation
2. noun

   the process of recognizing something or someone by remembering
   synonyms: recognition

   types:

   identity

   the individual characteristics by which a thing or person is recognized or known

   speaker identification, talker identification

   identification of a person from the sound of their voice

   type of:

   memory, remembering

   the cognitive processes whereby past experience is remembered
3. noun

   the condition of having the identity (of a person or object) established
   “the thief's identification was followed quickly by his arrest”

   “identification of the gun was an important clue”

   type of:

   condition, status

   a state at a particular time
4. noun

   evidence of identity; something that identifies a person or thing
   types:

   ballistic fingerprinting, ballistic identification, bullet fingerprinting

   identification of the gun that fired a bullet from an analysis of the unique marks that every gun makes on the bullet it fires and on the shell ejected from it

   biometric authentication, biometric identification, identity verification

   the automatic identification of living individuals by using their physiological and behavioral characteristics

   imprint

   an identification of a publisher; a publisher's name along with the date and address and edition that is printed at the bottom of the title page

   positive identification

   evidence proving that you are who you say you are; evidence establishing that you are among the group of people already known to the system; recognition by the system leads to acceptance

   negative identification

   evidence proving that you are not who you say you are not; evidence establishing that you are not among a group of people already known to the system; recognition by the system leads to rejection

   facial profiling

   identification of criminals and terrorist by means of videotapes of their faces

   fingerprint

   a generic term for any identifying characteristic

   linguistic profiling

   using speech characteristics or dialect to identify a speaker's race or religion or social class

   profiling

   recording a person's behavior and analyzing psychological characteristics in order to predict or assess their ability in a certain sphere or to identify a particular group of people

   key

   a generic term for any device whose possession entitles the holder to a means of access

   identification number, number

   a numeral or string of numerals that is used for identification

   card, identity card

   a card certifying the identity of the bearer

   DNA fingerprint, genetic fingerprint

   biometric identification obtained by examining a person's unique sequence of DNA base pairs; often used for evidence in criminal law cases

   automatic face recognition, face recognition, facial recognition

   biometric identification by scanning a person's face and matching it against a library of known faces

   fingerprint

   a print made by an impression of the ridges in the skin of a finger; often used for biometric identification in criminal investigations

   finger scan, finger scanning

   biometric identification by automatically scanning a person's fingerprints electronically

   iris scanning

   biometric identification by scanning the iris of the eye

   signature recognition

   biometric identification by automatically scanning a person's signature and matching it electronically against a library of known signatures

   retinal scanning

   biometric identification by scanning the retina of the eye

   voiceprint

   biometric identification by electronically recording and graphically representing a person's voice

   countersign, parole, password, watchword, word

   a secret word or phrase known only to a restricted group

   green card

   a card that identifies the bearer as an alien with permanent resident status in the United States

   I.D., ID

   a card or badge used to identify the bearer

   charge card, charge plate, credit card, plastic

   a card (usually plastic) that assures a seller that the person using it has a satisfactory credit rating and that the issuer will see to it that the seller receives payment for the merchandise delivered

   debit card

   a card (usually plastic) that enables the holder to withdraw money or to have the cost of purchases charged directly to the holder's bank account

   smart card

   a plastic card containing a microprocessor that enables the holder to perform operations requiring data that is stored in the microprocessor; typically used to perform financial transactions

   type of:

   evidence

   an indication that makes something evident
5. noun

   the attribution to yourself (consciously or unconsciously) of the characteristics of another person (or group of persons)
   type of:

   identity, individuality, personal identity, selfhood

   the distinct personality of an individual regarded as a persisting entity