identifies to

USAGE SUMMARY

The phrase "identifies to" is not correct and usable in written English.
It is typically used incorrectly; the correct preposition should be "with" or "as" depending on the context. Example: "The report identifies the main issues with the current policy."

⚠ May contain grammatical issues

Science

News & Media

Formal & Business

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

12 human-written examples

He likes to trace each problem he identifies to a mistaken law or principle: judges' deference to juries inspires irresponsible lawsuits, civil service regulations lock up bureaucrats, antidiscrimination laws encourage employees to sue their managers.

The New York Times - Books

Those councillors' challenge to their council's planners to deliver new homes quickly is perhaps even greater and more urgent than the "hustle" Ghosh identifies to be coming from government.

The Guardian

His comedic drama "Taxi," from 2015, is a lesson in how to make a movie without appearing to make a movie: he drives a taxi in Tehran, and most of the movie's action — which takes place inside or just outside his cab — is recorded on a tiny camera, affixed to the dashboard, that he identifies to passengers as a security device.

The New Yorker

a A CRF (conditional random fields) classifier identifies to which of a set of categories a new information belongs, based on CRF, a probabilistic framework for labeling and segmenting structured data [45].

Journal of the Brazilian Computer Society

This concept is similar to what Tadda and Salerno [28] refer to as "Knowledge of Us" (data relevant to the importance of assets or capabilities of the enterprise)—hence, a process that identifies to the decision maker whether there is a potential or current impact to capabilities or assets used to perform a mission.

Security Informatics

The small open reading frame (smORF) sequence of HN fully identifies to the mtDNA.

Aging Cell

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

47 human-written examples

I left the identifying to her.

The New Yorker

All declined to be identified to avoid offending Armstrong.

The New York Times - Sports

She often dresses very flamboyantly, often in rainbow-decorated dresses and hats, and self-identifies to people as transgender.

Huffington Post

Early in his mayoral campaign, Ouellette, an administrator of Aboriginal Focus Programs at the University of Manitoba who self-identifies to both Cree and Métis backgrounds, brought attention to the deep-seated racism in Winnipeg when he spoke out against racist attacks he was receiving on Facebook and via email.

Vice

Each surname is identified to a species.

Plosone

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

When aiming to express a connection or association, replace "identifies to" with "identifies with". This provides a grammatically correct and contextually appropriate usage.

Common error

Avoid using "identifies to" when you mean "identifies with" or "identifies as". Double-check the context to ensure you're using the correct preposition to convey the intended relationship.

Linguistic Context

The phrase "identifies to" functions incorrectly as a verb phrase, attempting to link a subject with a descriptor. However, as pointed out by Ludwig AI, this construction is grammatically unsound. Proper usage often requires replacing "to" with "with" or "as" to establish a correct grammatical relationship.

Expression frequency: Uncommon

Frequent in

Science

30%

News & Media

30%

Formal & Business

10%

Less common in

Encyclopedias

0%

Wiki

0%

Reference

0%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In summary, the phrase "identifies to" is generally considered grammatically incorrect in English. As Ludwig AI points out, more appropriate alternatives include "identifies with" (to express a connection) or "identifies as" (to define a role or category). Although the phrase appears across different contexts, its usage should be avoided in formal writing to maintain clarity and grammatical accuracy. Using these alternative expressions will improve the precision and correctness of your writing.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

identifies with

Replaces "to" with "with", indicating a sense of connection or association rather than direction.

identifies as

Replaces "to" with "as", specifying a role, type, or category to which something belongs.

identifies

Removes "to", making it a direct transitive verb; the object follows directly.

determines

Conveys a similar meaning of discovering or establishing something with certainty.

establishes

Focuses on setting up or proving something, similar to identifying a fact.

pinpoints

Highlights the act of locating or identifying something with precision.

detects

Indicates the act of discovering or noticing something, often something hidden or subtle.

recognizes

Implies acknowledging or being aware of something, similar to identifying it.

labels as

Specifies the act of categorizing or naming something, similar to identifying its type.

classifies as

Focuses on assigning something to a specific group or category.

FAQs

How should I correctly use the verb "identify" with a preposition?

The verb "identify" commonly pairs with prepositions "with" or "as", depending on the intended meaning. Use "identify with" to express a sense of connection, or "identify as" to define something's role or category. The phrase "identifies to" is generally considered incorrect.

Is "identifies to" grammatically correct in English?

No, "identifies to" is generally considered grammatically incorrect. The correct usage typically involves "identifies with" or "identifies as", depending on the context.

What are some alternatives to the incorrect phrase "identifies to"?

Instead of "identifies to", use alternatives like "identifies with", "identifies as", or simply "identifies" followed directly by the object, depending on the context you want to convey.

When should I use "identifies with" versus "identifies as"?

"Identifies with" is used to express a sense of connection or empathy, while "identifies as" is used to define or categorize something. For example: "She identifies with the character's struggles" versus "He identifies as a programmer".