| verb | mark as different “We distinguish several kinds of maple” |
| verb | be a distinctive feature, attribute, or trait; sometimes in a very positive sense “His modesty distinguishes him from his peers” |
| verb | calculate a derivative; take the derivative |
| verb | become different during development “cells differentiate” |
| verb | evolve so as to lead to a new species or develop in a way most suited to the environment |
| verb | become distinct and acquire a different character |
| adjective | made different (especially in the course of development) or shown to be different “the differentiated markings of butterflies” |
| adjective | exhibiting biological specialization; adapted during development to a specific function or environment |
| distinction | noun | a discrimination between things as different and distinct |
| difference | noun | a variation that deviates from the standard or norm |
| differentiation | noun | a discrimination between things as different and distinct |
| differentiator | noun | a person who (or that which) differentiates |
| mark | noun | a distinguishing symbol |
| marker | noun | a distinguishing symbol |
| speciation | noun | the evolution of a biological species |
| specialization | noun | (biology) the structural adaptation of some body part for a particular function |
| specialisation | noun | (biology) the structural adaptation of some body part for a particular function |