distribute
Americanverb (used with object)
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to divide and give out in shares; deal out; allot.
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to disperse through a space or over an area; spread; scatter.
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to promote, sell, and ship or deliver (an item or line of merchandise) to individual customers, especially in a specified region or area.
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to pass out or deliver (mail, newspapers, etc.) to intended recipients.
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to divide into distinct phases.
The process was distributed into three stages.
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to divide into classes.
These plants are distributed into 22 classes.
- Synonyms:
- categorize, arrange, sort, classify
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Logic. to employ (a term) in a proposition so as to refer to all individuals denoted by the term.
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Physical Chemistry. to dissolve uniformly in a solvent consisting of layers of immiscible or partially miscible substances.
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Printing.
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to roll out (ink) on the table to attain the proper consistency.
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to return (type) to the proper place after printing.
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verb
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to give out in shares; dispense
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to hand out or deliver
to distribute handbills
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(often passive) to spread throughout a space or area
gulls are distributed along the west coast
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(often passive) to divide into classes or categories; classify
these books are distributed in four main categories
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printing to return (used type) to the correct positions in the type case
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logic to incorporate in a distributed term of a categorial proposition
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maths logic to expand an expression containing two operators in such a way that the precedence of the operators is changed; for example, distributing multiplication over addition in a ( b + c ) yields ab + ac
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obsolete to dispense (justice)
Related Words
Distribute, dispense apply to giving out something. Distribute implies apportioned, individualized giving, especially of something that is definite or limited in amount or number: The prizes were distributed among ten winners. Dispense formerly implied indiscriminate, general, and liberal giving, especially of something that was more or less indefinite or unmeasured in amount: to dispense largesse. It now applies chiefly to giving according to need or deserts, from an organized and official source: to dispense medicines and food to the victims.
Other Word Forms
- distributable adjective
- predistribute verb (used with object)
Etymology
Origin of distribute
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Latin distribūtus, past participle of distribuere “to divide up”; dis- 1, tribute
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.
The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies said the Lebanese Red Cross was distributing aid to households, including blankets, mattresses, meals, bread and safe drinking water.
From Barron's
Despite this, scientists still have limited understanding of how drugs distribute within tumors and what controls that process.
From Science Daily
Vivo Energy Kenya, which distributes Shell products and services in Kenya, said on Thursday that increased demand had resulted in "temporary stock-outs" at some of its service stations.
From BBC
The government has promised an extra £53m which will be distributed by councils via the Crisis and Resilience Fund, which comes into effect on 1 April.
From BBC
These structures distribute traffic across many small openings instead of forcing everything through a single path.
From Science Daily
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.
