Marked Meaning
/mɑːkt/Definition, CEFR level B2, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
Listen pronunciation
Definition
adjHaving a visible or identifying mark.
adjHaving a visible or identifying mark., Having a secret mark on the back for cheating.
Sentence Examples
There are marked and rapidly, steadily increasing health benefits to giving up.
The party was a marked success.
The flood level is marked by a white line on the wall.
Synonyms & Antonyms
Antonyms:
CEFR Practice Quiz
There was a ____ improvement in her health after she started exercising.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
There has been a ____ improvement in the student's grades since they started working with a private tutor.
Word Origin & History
From mark (“sign, characteristic, visible impression”) + -ed. Less common disyllabic pronunciation (/ˈmɑː.kɪd/) is likely an analogy derived from markedness (explaining its restriction to sense 2).
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"In ancient times, the Romans imported truffles, credited with marked aphrodisiac virtue, from Libya as well as Greece."
— 1961, Harry E. Wedeck, Dictionary of Aphrodisiacs, New York: The Citadel Press, page 137:
"The drop in merchandise and mineral receipts again reflects the fall in steel output, most marked in the North-East; […]."
— 1962 October, “Talking of Trains: Little passenger traffic and less freight”, in Modern Railways, pages 220–221:
"There has been a marked shift in viewing habits since the channels’ heyday, with music videos now more commonly consumed on YouTube and social media rather than television."
— 2026 January 1, Max Pilley, “MTV shuts down final music-only channels with ‘Video Killed The Radio Star’”, in NME:
"It is frequently the case that of two units in contrast (and for simplicity we may restrict ourselves to two-term contrasts) one will be positive, or marked, the other being neutral, or unmarked. […] The plural is positively marked by the final s, whereas the singular is unmarked."
— 1968, John Lyons, Introduction to Theoretical Linguistics, Cambridge University Press, →ISBN, page 79:
"My secret terror for the last six months has been leaving them on the Moon and returning to Earth alone; now I am within minutes of finding out the truth of the matter. If they fail to rise from the surface, or crash back into it, I am not going to commit suicide; I am coming home, forthwith, but I will be a marked man for life and I know it."
— 1974, Michael Collins, Carrying the Fire: An Astronaut's Journeys, New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, →ISBN, pages 411–412:
Explore More B2 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
There was a ____ improvement in her health after she started exercising.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
There has been a ____ improvement in the student's grades since they started working with a private tutor.