departmentalize

American

[dih-pahrt-men-tl-ahyz, dee-pahrt-] / dɪ pɑrtˈmɛn tlˌaɪz, ˌdi pɑrt- /

especially British, departmentalise

verb (used with object)

departmentalized, departmentalizing

to divide into departments.

departmentalize British

/ ˌdiːpɑːtˈmɛntəˌlaɪz /

verb

(tr) to organize into departments, esp excessively

"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

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

departmentalization

noun

Etymology

Origin of departmentalize

First recorded in 1895–1900; departmental ( def. ) + -ize

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.

Many of my students confess they were unaware of this history and the broader quest to departmentalize African American studies.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 3, 2023

The Chinese did not departmentalize their learning to any considerable degree.

From The Political Doctrines of Sun Yat-sen: An Exposition of the San Min Chu I by Linebarger, Paul Myron Anthony

Then as we began to make parts, we began to departmentalize so that each department would do only one thing.

From My Life and Work by Ford, Henry

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023