separate

[ verb sep-uh-reyt; adjective noun sep-er-it ]

verb (used with object)

, sep·a·rat·ed, sep·a·rat·ing.

1. to keep apart or divide, as by an intervening barrier or space:

   to separate two fields by a fence.

   Synonyms: split, sunder, sever

   Antonyms: connect, unite

2. to put, bring, or force apart; part:

   to separate two fighting boys.

   Synonyms: split, sunder, sever

   Antonyms: connect, unite

3. to set apart; disconnect; dissociate:

   to separate church and state.

   Synonyms: disengage, disjoin

   Antonyms: connect, unite

4. to remove or sever from association, service, etc., especially legally or formally:

   He was separated from the army right after V-E Day.

5. to sort, part, divide, or disperse (an assemblage, mass, compound, etc.), as into individual units, components, or elements.
6. to take by parting or dividing; extract (usually followed by from or out ):

   to separate metal from ore.

7. Mathematics. to write (the variables of a differential equation) in a form in which the differentials of the independent and dependent variables are, respectively, functions of these variables alone: Compare separation of variables.

   We can separate the variables to solve the equation.

verb (used without object)

, sep·a·rat·ed, sep·a·rat·ing.

1. to part company; withdraw from personal association (often followed by from ):

   to separate from a church.

2. (of a married pair) to stop living together but without getting a divorce.
3. to draw or come apart; become divided, disconnected, or detached.
4. to become parted from a mass or compound:

   Cream separates from milk.

5. to take or go in different directions:

   We have to separate at the crossroad.

adjective

1. detached, disconnected, or disjoined.

   Synonyms: discrete, unattached

2. unconnected; distinct; unique:

   two separate questions.

3. being or standing apart; distant or dispersed:

   two separate houses;

   The desert has widely separate oases.

   Synonyms: isolated, secluded

4. existing or maintained independently:

   separate organizations.

   Synonyms: independent

5. individual or particular:

   each separate item.

6. not shared; individual or private:

   separate checks;

   separate rooms.

7. Sometimes Sep·a·rate. noting or relating to a church or other organization no longer associated with the original or parent organization.

noun

1. Usually sep·a·rates. women's outer garments that may be worn in combination with a variety of others to make different ensembles, as matching and contrasting blouses, skirts, and sweaters.
2. offprint ( def 1 ).
3. a bibliographical unit, as an article, chapter, or other portion of a larger work, printed from the same type but issued separately, sometimes with additional pages.

separate

verb

1. tr to act as a barrier between

   a range of mountains separates the two countries

2. to put or force or be put or forced apart
3. to part or be parted from a mass or group
4. tr to discriminate between

   to separate the men from the boys

5. to divide or be divided into component parts; sort or be sorted
6. to sever or be severed
7. intr (of a married couple) to cease living together by mutual agreement or after obtaining a decree of judicial separation

adjective

1. existing or considered independently

   a separate problem

2. disunited or apart
3. set apart from the main body or mass
4. distinct, individual, or particular
5. solitary or withdrawn
6. sometimes capital designating or relating to a Church or similar institution that has ceased to have associations with an original parent organization

Derived Forms

• ˈseparateness, noun
• ˈseparately, adverb

Other Words From

• sep·a·rate·ly adverb
• sep·a·rate·ness noun
• non·sep·a·rat·ing adjective
• pre·sep·a·rate verb (used with object) preseparated preseparating
• re·sep·a·rate verb reseparated reseparating
• un·sep·a·rate adjective
• un·sep·a·rate·ness noun
• un·sep·a·rat·ed adjective
• un·sep·a·rat·ing adjective
• well-sep·a·rat·ed adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of separate¹

First recorded in 1400–50; from late Middle English (noun and adjective), from Latin sēparātus, past participle of sēparāre, equivalent to sē- se- + parāre “to furnish, produce, obtain”; prepare

Word History and Origins

Origin of separate¹

C15: from Latin sēparāre, from sē- apart + parāre to obtain

Synonym Study

Separate, divide imply a putting apart or keeping apart of things from each other. To separate is to remove from each other things previously associated: to separate a mother from her children. To divide is to split or break up carefully according to measurement, rule, or plan: to divide a cake into equal parts.

Example Sentences

In both “Say Nothing,” and “The Diplomat,” Kinnear’s accent serves to separate his characters from the shows’ protagonists — various members of the IRA in the former and U.S. ambassador to the U.K.

From Los Angeles Times

In 2001, this was broken up, with separate departments for environment, food and rural affairs, and for transport, hived off.

From BBC

We came into her world of structure ready to play around and she instantly separated us and promised to remove those of us who wouldn’t comply.

From Salon

A separate press release announced that an arrest warrant had also been issued for Muhammad Deif, Hamas' military chief, for crimes against humanity over his role in planning and executing the Oct.

From Salon

Each came from separate, previously unconnected families but developed unexplained medical problems that led to their mothers being arrested.

From BBC

Related Words

• autonomous
• different
• distinct
• diverse
• free
• independent
• particular
• single
• unique
• various