I wrote
To create a wrapper, the user first identifies text features such as textual delimiters, keywords, constants or text patterns, which we call anchors, to distinguish and delimit data regions and data records on a representative page.
by "distinguish" I mean "to make distinct", does it have such meaning?
In fact I don't know the meaning of identify and distinguish or similar words.
in dictionary identify is to recognize someone or something. Then can I say "I identify an object on the page for the reader"? or it is an action that every one should do by himself? Then what would be the word I should use in such sentence?
Similarly, distinguish is to recognize the difference between two or more things. So, for example, you may distinguish something on a page. What if I highlight them or use some landmarks to make them distinguishable? what is the word of my action? Do I again distinguish them?
===== Examples of my usage =====
I can't distinguish the mountain you climbed in this picture
I can't identify any damage in this car
But are these ok too?
This tree distinguishes the mountain we climbed in this picture
This spot identifies a damage to the body of the car
Best Answer
If you check the definitions of distinguish, the meaning varies depending on the statement.
In the case of:
When you write:
I expect to read "distinguish between (something) and (something else)".
In the case of:
When you write:
if the tree was iconic so that when you saw it you knew where it was, then this usage is OK.
I guess this one applies to your example, without additional context.
Your understanding of identify is correct.