bifurcate

[ verb, adjective bahy-fer-keyt, bahy-fur-keyt; adjective also bahy-fer-kit, bahy-fur- ]

/ verb, adjective ˈbaɪ fərˌkeɪt, baɪˈfɜr keɪt; adjective also ˈbaɪ fər kɪt, baɪˈfɜr- /

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See synonyms for: bifurcate / bifurcated / bifurcation on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with or without object), bi·fur·cat·ed, bi·fur·cat·ing.

to divide or fork into two branches.

adjective

divided into two branches.

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Origin of bifurcate

1605–15; <Medieval Latin bifurcātus, past participle of bifurcāre (bi-bi-¹ + furc(a) fork + -ātus-ate¹)

OTHER WORDS FROM bifurcate

bi·fur·cate·ly

[bahy-fer-keyt-lee; bahy-fur-keyt-lee, -kit-], /ˌbaɪ fərˈkeɪt li; baɪˈfɜr keɪt li, -kɪt-/, adverbbi·fur·ca·tion, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use bifurcate in a sentence

Contrary to what it might look like, the bi-stable hinge doesn’t split the shoe in half, but rather bifurcates the outsole, according to Sarah Reinertsen, Nike’s lead designer of the GO FlyEase.
Nike’s lace-free sneakers offer a perfect fit you simply step into|Claire Maldarelli|February 2, 2021|Popular-Science
To be sure, a zillion Obama critics are dumping on the bifurcated break.
Michelle Obama Stranded by Her Man as Barack Goes on a Golfing Weekend|Lauren Ashburn|February 16, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Quindlen said she was avoiding the bifurcated view our culture has of relationships.
Anna Quindlen on Staying Happily Married|Hannah Seligson|April 29, 2010|DAILY BEAST
The arms were short and thick and ended in bifurcated lumps of flesh like swollen hands encased in old-fashioned mittens.
Astounding Stories, April, 1931|Various

The hafting area consists of an expanded stem that is shallowly bifurcated.
Handbook of Alabama Archaeology: Part I Point Types|James W. Cambron
Except for the bifurcated stem some examples are similar to some of the Jude points recovered in this excavation.
Handbook of Alabama Archaeology: Part I Point Types|James W. Cambron
Then, for the first time, the officer recalled that the trail bifurcated like the river itself.
Up the Forked River|Edward Sylvester Ellis
The hafting area consists of a stem that is usually expanded (rarely, straight) and always deeply bifurcated.
Handbook of Alabama Archaeology: Part I Point Types|James W. Cambron

British Dictionary definitions for bifurcate

bifurcate

verb (ˈbaɪfəˌkeɪt)

to fork or divide into two parts or branches

adjective (ɪbaɪˈfəˌkeɪt, -kɪt)

forked or divided into two sections or branches

Derived forms of bifurcate

bifurcation, noun

Word Origin for bifurcate

C17: from Medieval Latin bifurcātus, from Latin bifurcus, from bi- 1 + furca fork

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012