differentiates

Differentiates is the third‑person singular present tense of the verb differentiate. The term denotes the act of recognizing or creating differences between two or more things, or making something distinct in classification. It is used across disciplines such as science, law, linguistics, and everyday language to describe how items, ideas, or processes are set apart or distinguished.

In mathematics, differentiate means to compute the derivative of a function with respect to a variable. The derivative describes the rate of change and is central to calculus. Notation includes f'(x) and df/dx. The verb form appears in sentences like “The function differentiates with respect to x,” though more common phrasing is to reference the derivative itself, such as “the derivative of f with respect to x is f'(x).”

In other domains, differentiation refers to processes that produce specialized outcomes. In biology, cellular differentiation is the development of unspecialized cells into specialized cell types. In computer science and data analysis, differentiators or differentiation methods distinguish between classes or outcomes. In general usage, to differentiate is to identify distinguishing features or characteristics that separate one item from another, or to set apart items in a classification system.

Etymology traces differentiate to Latin differentia, from differre “to bear apart” or “to differ.” The English form appeared in the 16th century, evolving into differentiate and differentiation. Common usage notes include pairing with between or from as appropriate, and recognizing synonyms such as distinguish, discriminate, or separate when not referring to a specific mathematical operation.