segregate
Americanverb (used with object)
-
segregates,
present (3rd person singular)
-
segregated,
past participle, past
-
segregating
present participle
-
to separate or set apart from others or from the main body or group; isolate.
to segregate exceptional children; to segregate hardened criminals.
- Antonyms:
- integrate
-
to require, by law or custom, the separation of (an ethnic, racial, religious, or other minority group) from the dominant majority.
verb (used without object)
-
segregates,
present (3rd person singular)
-
segregated,
past participle, past
-
segregating
present participle
-
to separate, withdraw, or go apart; separate from the main body and collect in one place; become segregated.
-
to practice, require, or enforce segregation, especially racial segregation.
-
Genetics. (of allelic genes) to separate during meiosis.
noun
verb
-
to set or be set apart from others or from the main group
-
(tr) to impose segregation on (a racial or minority group)
-
genetics metallurgy to undergo or cause to undergo segregation
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
segregatornoun
-
resegregateverb
-
nonsegregableadjective
-
nonsegregativeadjective
-
segregableadjective
-
segregativeadjective
-
unsegregableadjective
-
unsegregatingadjective
-
unsegregativeadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
segregatesimple
-
segregatessimple
-
have segregatedperfect
-
has segregatedperfect
-
am segregatingprogressive
-
are segregatingprogressive
-
is segregatingprogressive
-
have been segregatingperfect progressive
-
has been segregatingperfect progressive
Past
-
segregatedsimple
-
had segregatedperfect
-
was segregatingprogressive
-
were segregatingprogressive
-
had been segregatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of segregate
1400–50 in sense “segregated”; 1535–45 as transitive v.; late Middle English segregat < Latin sēgregātus (past participle of sēgregāre to part from the flock), equivalent to sē- se- + greg- (stem of grex flock) + -ātus -ate 1; see gregarious
Explanation
To separate people by race or religion is to segregate them. In general, the word segregate means to separate one type of thing from another. In the United States, the practice of segregating blacks from whites in public schools and public places was common in the South until the 1960s. Because of this, people don't even like to use the word segregate in its neutral sense. But you could rightly say that new bicycle lanes are designed to segregate bikes from auto traffic.
Vocabulary lists containing segregate
We Are the Ship: The Story of Negro League Baseball
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
"Reading Lolita in Tehran," Vocabulary from the memoir
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Because They Marched
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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.
See Examples For:
The model was trained to segregate the “pure news” in each article from that which was old and stale and, therefore, predictable.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 4, 2026
His aim wasn’t to segregate black history from the national narrative but to force its inclusion.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 4, 2026
You have to segregate a set of limbs, a section of the undulating trunk, or even a scarred piece of bark to describe who they are.
From Seattle Times ● May 24, 2024
"Thus the organization of neural responses into subspaces can both segregate and integrate information," the authors write.
From Science Daily ● Apr. 17, 2024
And why should I restrict myself, segregate myself?
From "Invisible Man" by Ralph Ellison
The factory accepts waste material which it then sorts and segregates.
From BBC ● Aug. 9, 2023
Frustrating others, sadly, does little to instill joy and only further segregates Americans.
From Washington Times ● Dec. 15, 2022
And yet, "y'all" is a word that in and of itself integrates rather than segregates.
From Salon ● Feb. 7, 2021
Admiral Ring renewed that effort last June, telling reporters that the current top-secret prison where the military segregates high-value detainees, called Camp 7, would become inadequate as the prisoners aged.
From New York Times ● Apr. 28, 2019
Later the divine WORD; the Creative Fiat, reverberates through space and segregates the homogeneous virgin substance into separate forms.
From The Rosicrucian Mysteries An Elementary Exposition of Their Secret Teachings by Max Heindel
For Morris, stepping into the shoes of a Black journalist working during the Great Depression and in a still segregated reality entailed meaningful research.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 20, 2026
Refiners have to follow very precise sets of specifications for jet fuel, and also have to make sure the product is completely segregated from other derivatives and adequately stored.
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 28, 2026
The Tory leader's spokesman said Timothy's comments were based on footage showing segregated males praying at the event.
From BBC ● Mar. 18, 2026
"Sinners," the tale of gangster twins returning home to a supernatural and segregated Deep South in the 1930s, has already made Academy Awards history with its whopping 16 nominations.
From Barron's ● Mar. 15, 2026
After singing and praying in front of City Hall, the demonstrators broke up into small groups and entered several segregated downtown businesses.
From "The Best of Enemies" by Osha Gray Davidson
At this World Cup, authorities didn’t bother segregating them, including at the potentially fractious semifinal between ancient enemies England and Argentina.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 18, 2026
It was launched in the 1970s by the federal government as an alternative to public housing projects, which were criticized for segregating poor families in neighborhoods with low-quality schools and other substandard services.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 8, 2025
"There's no point segregating ourselves. On that date we will have an audience, so why not educate them?"
From BBC ● Jan. 25, 2024
When asked whether identifying and segregating the necessary proportion of the population may not be achievable for that approach to be effective, Bhattacharya replied by criticizing the experts who claimed that to be the case.
From Salon ● Dec. 16, 2022
But this neatness, the neatness of Dante, was in the orderly sectioning and segregating of all levels of evil and decay.
From "The Bluest Eye" by Toni Morrison
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.
