Definition of: recognition

(rek′əg·nish′ən) noun
1. The act of recognizing; the process of memory that identifies an object, person, etc., as already known or experienced.
2. Acknowledgment of a fact or claim.
3. Friendly notice; salutation; attention: recognition of a speaker by the chair.
4. Acknowledgment and acceptance on the part of one government of the independence and validity of another. See synonyms under KNOWLEDGE. [<L recognitio, -onis <recognitus, pp. of recognoscere. See RECOGNIZANCE.]
—re·cog·ni·to·ry (ri·kog′nə·tôr′ē, -tō′rē), re·cog′ni·tive adjective