subdivide
Americanverb (used with object)
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to divide (that which has already been divided) into smaller parts; divide again after a first division.
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to divide into parts.
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to divide (a plot, tract of land, etc.) into building lots.
verb (used without object)
verb
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to divide (something) resulting from an earlier division
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(tr) to divide (land) into lots for sale
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Conjugated Forms
Present
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has subdividedperfect 3rd person singular
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have subdividedperfect
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is subdividingprogressive 3rd person singular
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subdividessingular 3rd person
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are subdividingprogressive
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have been subdividingperfect progressive
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am subdividingprogressive 1st person singular
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has been subdividingperfect progressive 3rd person singular
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subdividingparticiple
Past
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had subdividedperfect
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had been subdividingperfect progressive
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were subdividingprogressive plural
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subdividedsimple
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subdividedparticiple
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was subdividingprogressive singular
Future
Etymology
Origin of subdivide
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English word from Late Latin word subdīvīdere. See sub-, divide
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
And so even in the legislature, we subdivide power again between Senate and house.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 7, 2026
Or, he could apply to subdivide the lots into multiple smaller ownerships.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 21, 2025
Unlike state criminal codes, the federal criminal code does not “grade” or subdivide most of its white-collar offenses.
From Slate • Oct. 16, 2023
“That male lineage unifies the tomb, whereas female ancestors subdivide the community.”
From Science Magazine • Oct. 4, 2023
But she was probably being modest, because if you looked harder at Weisberg’s life you could probably subdivide her experiences into fifteen or twenty worlds.
From "The Tipping Point" by Malcolm Gladwell
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
