Definition of "individuate" [in•di•vid•u•ate]

• To give individuality to; individualize. (verb-transitive)
• To form into a separate, distinct entity. (verb-transitive)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "Only a human being can individuate, which is to say, achieve a destiny which is unique to him."
• "Fathers, he says, help the child "individuate"; they are more willing than mothers to let a child out of their sight, and on average will let a baby crawl as much as twice as far before retrieving her."
• "This is why humans don't tend to blush until about age two, right around the same time they "individuate" and realize they are not the same person as mom and dad."