divest
Americanverb (used with object)
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to strip of clothing, ornament, etc..
The wind divested the trees of their leaves.
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to strip or deprive (someone or something), especially of property or rights; dispossess.
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to rid of or free from.
He divested himself of all responsibility for the decision.
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Law. to take away or alienate (property, rights, etc.).
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Commerce.
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to sell off.
to divest holdings.
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to rid of through sale.
The corporation divested itself of its subsidiaries.
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verb
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to strip (of clothes)
to divest oneself of one's coat
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to deprive or dispossess
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property law to take away an estate or interest in property vested (in a person)
Related Words
See strip 1.
Other Word Forms
- divestible adjective
- divestiture noun
- undivested adjective
Etymology
Origin of divest
First recorded in 1595–1605; from Medieval Latin dīvestīre, equivalent to dī- di- 2 + vestīre “to dress”; vest
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.
Congress passed, and the Supreme Court unanimously upheld, a law requiring the app’s Chinese owner, ByteDance, to divest and relinquish operational control of the U.S. business or be banned.
Islamabad has promised to divest dozens of its cash-burning enterprises in the finance, energy, industrial and retailing sectors by 2029 under a $7 billion loan programme agreed with the International Monetary Fund last year.
From Barron's
There is a five-year Medicaid look-back period to review whether an individual divested themselves of assets in order to qualify for benefits.
From MarketWatch
Huckabee said he divested his interest in Blue Diamond Travel to his son before he was confirmed as ambassador.
ByteDance had been under pressure to divest its ownership in the app’s U.S. operations or face a nationwide ban after Congress passed a law that went into effect in January.
From Los Angeles Times
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.
