non-identifying
|non-i-den-ti-fy-ing|
🇺🇸
/ˌnɑn.aɪˈdɛn.tɪ.faɪ.ɪŋ/
🇬🇧
/ˌnɒn.aɪˈdɛn.tɪ.faɪ.ɪŋ/
not specifying identity
Etymology
'non-identifying' is formed in English from the prefix 'non-' (from Latin 'non', meaning 'not') + 'identifying', the present-participle adjective form of 'identify'.
'identify' entered English via French/Medieval Latin (from Latin 'identificare', from 'idem' meaning 'same' + 'facere' meaning 'to make'), and the English prefix 'non-' has long been used to create negating compounds; these combined to produce compounds such as 'non-identifying' in modern English usage.
Originally 'identify' meant 'to make the same' or 'to recognize/make known'; over time 'identify' came to mean 'establish or indicate who or what something is', and 'non-identifying' developed to mean 'not establishing identity' (used especially for clauses that do not restrict identity).
Meanings by Part of Speech
Adjective 1
(grammar) Describing a clause (often a relative clause) that adds extra, non-essential information and does not identify which specific person or thing is meant; also called non-defining or non-restrictive.
In the sentence 'My sister, who lives in Canada, visited last week,' the clause 'who lives in Canada' is non-identifying.
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Adjective 2
not serving to identify; not providing identification (general use).
The tag on the package was non-identifying, so we couldn't tell who sent it.
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Last updated: 2026/01/06 12:55