diverge

American  

[dih-vurj, dahy-] / dɪˈvɜrdʒ, daɪ- /

verb (used without object)

diverges, present (3rd person singular) diverged, past participle, past diverging present participle

1. to move, lie, or extend in different directions from a common point; branch off.

   Synonyms:

   fork, deviate, separate

2. to differ in opinion, character, form, etc.; deviate.

3. Mathematics. (of a sequence, series, etc.) to have no unique limit; to have infinity as a limit.

4. to turn aside or deviate, as from a path, practice, or plan.

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verb (used with object)

diverges, present (3rd person singular) diverged, past participle, past diverging present participle

1. to deflect or turn aside.

diverge British  

/ daɪˈvɜːdʒ /

verb

1. to separate or cause to separate and go in different directions from a point

2. (intr) to be at variance; differ

   our opinions diverge

3. (intr) to deviate from a prescribed course

4. (intr) maths (of a series or sequence) to have no limit

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Synonym Usage

See deviate.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nondiverging
  adjective
• undiverging
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• diverging
  present
• diverged
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• diverge
  simple
• diverges
  simple
• have diverged
  perfect
• has diverged
  perfect
• am diverging
  progressive
• are diverging
  progressive
• is diverging
  progressive
• have been diverging
  perfect progressive
• has been diverging
  perfect progressive

Past

• diverged
  simple
• had diverged
  perfect
• was diverging
  progressive
• were diverging
  progressive
• had been diverging
  perfect progressive

Future

• will diverge
  simple
• will have diverged
  perfect
• will be diverging
  progressive
• will have been diverging
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of diverge

First recorded in 1655–65; from Medieval Latin dīvergere, from Latin dī- di- ² + vergere “to incline”

Explanation

When two roads diverge, they split and go in different directions. If your opinion diverges from mine, we do not agree. To diverge means to move apart or be separate. The poet, Robert Frost, wrote: "Two roads diverged in a wood, and I -/ I took the one less traveled by / And that has made all the difference." The word diverge in the poem carries both the meaning of separating and of being apart from the main. As a poet, it was Frost's job to use words properly. Here he does not diverge from this role.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

diverge diverges diverged diverging

Or are they simply the result of the random loss of gene variants as populations become isolated and slowly diverge over time?

From Science Daily ● Jun. 24, 2026

This is also where marinated beans diverge from bean salad, at least in my personal taxonomy.

From Salon ● Jun. 16, 2026

Ministers gathered for a digital G7 meeting in Paris Friday, with host France expecting they will find common ground on online child protection but diverge over the environmental impact of computing.

From Barron's ● May 29, 2026

But there are other ways that this agreement appears to diverge from US law, tax experts say.

From BBC ● May 21, 2026

In the course of the seventeenth century the Latin words experientia and experimentum and, with them, the English words ‘experience’ and ‘experiment’ began to diverge in meaning.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton

But here is where the new theology diverges most sharply from the old.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 29, 2026

In fact, Wilson argues that his view of a broadening in earnings growth and market leadership diverges from the Wall Street consensus.

From Barron's ● May 13, 2026

Norton, the showrunner of Netflix’s “Finding Her Edge,” said much of that show’s plot diverges from Jennifer Iacopelli’s novel.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 13, 2026

Campbell makes the point “when the physical diverges so sharply from the paper like this, one of them is wrong and historically, it’s not physical.”

From MarketWatch ● Dec. 29, 2025

The stomach often diverges from the normal in size, shape and position.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 8, Slice 4 "Diameter" to "Dinarchus" by Various

Almost immediately, the program diverged from the outcomes McClure had envisioned.

From Salon ● Jul. 4, 2026

The framework follows genome evolution across three broad stages: before ancestral species diverged, during their separate evolutionary histories, and after their genomes merged.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 19, 2026

But their interests quickly diverged after Iran shut the Strait of Hormuz and choked off oil and gas supplies.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 15, 2026

As a result, performance has diverged sharply between well-located trophy assets with strong tenants and older, less-competitive buildings.

From Barron's ● Jun. 5, 2026

I feel like the traveler in Robert Frost’s poem “The Road Not Taken”: “Two roads diverged in a wood, I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference.”

From "The Freedom Writers Diary" by The Freedom Writers

If I were on patrol to figure out where online subcultures were diverging from political reality, I’d start there.

From Slate ● Jul. 14, 2026

“We are concerned that housing demand and supply are set on diverging courses,” a team of analysts led by Ivy Zelman wrote in a 2021 examination of demographic trends.

From Barron's ● Jun. 28, 2026

Its clashes—between young prodigies and seasoned grandmasters, diverging national loyalties and opposing personalities—have inspired fiction, films, a popular Netflix series and a current Broadway musical revival.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 3, 2026

Different festivals appear to have adopted markedly different pricing strategies - such as moving to day events or offering less camping - leading to diverging real costs for music lovers across the UK festival circuit.

From BBC ● May 30, 2026

And that seemed to be where she and her parents were diverging.

From "Pet" by Akwaeke Emezi

Related Words

• deviate
• differ
• disagree
• dissent
• stray
• vary