divest
[ dih-vest, dahy- ]
/ dɪˈvɛst, daɪ- /
verb (used with object)
to strip of clothing, ornament, etc.: The wind divested the trees of their leaves.
to strip or deprive (someone or something), especially of property or rights; dispossess.
to rid of or free from: He divested himself of all responsibility for the decision.
Law. to take away or alienate (property, rights, etc.).
Commerce.
- to sell off: to divest holdings.
- to rid of through sale: The corporation divested itself of its subsidiaries.
RELATED WORDS
deprive, rob, dismantle, bankrupt, unload, bereave, dump, undress, bare, strip, ditch, milk, disrobe, despoil, plunder, spoil, bleed, disinherit, oust, seize
Nearby words
- divertimento,
- diverting,
- divertissement,
- divertive,
- dives,
- divestible,
- divestiture,
- divesture,
- divi,
- divi-divi
Origin of divest
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for divest
divest
/ (daɪˈvɛst) /
verb (tr usually foll by of)
to strip (of clothes)to divest oneself of one's coat
to deprive or dispossess
property law to take away an estate or interest in property vested (in a person)
Word Origin for divest
C17: changed from earlier devest
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
divest
1560s, devest (modern spelling is c.1600), from Middle French devester "strip of possessions," from Old French desvestir, from des- "away" (see dis-) + vestir "to clothe" (see vest (v.)).
The figurative sense of "strip of possessions" is earliest in English; reflexive sense of "to strip oneself of" is from c.1600. Economic sense (implied in divestment) is from 1955. Related: Divested; divesting.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper