division

[ dih-vizh-uhn ]

/ dɪˈvɪʒ ən /

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See synonyms for: division / divisions / divisional on Thesaurus.com

noun

the act or process of dividing; state of being divided.

Arithmetic. the operation inverse to multiplication; the finding of a quantity, the quotient, that when multiplied by a given quantity, the divisor, gives another given quantity, the dividend; the process of ascertaining how many times one number or quantity is contained in another.

something that divides or separates; partition.

something that marks a division; dividing line or mark.

one of the parts into which a thing is divided; section.

separation by difference of opinion or feeling; disagreement; dissension.

Government. the separation of a legislature, or the like, into two groups, in taking a vote.

one of the parts into which a country or an organization is divided for political, judicial, military, or other purposes.

Military.

(in the army) a major administrative and tactical unit, larger than a regiment or brigade and smaller than a corps: it is usually commanded by a major general.
(in the navy) a number of ships, usually four, forming a tactical group that is part of a fleet or squadron.

a major autonomous or semi-independent but subordinate administrative unit of an industrial enterprise, government bureau, transportation system, or university: the sales division of our company; the Division of Humanities.

(in sports) a category or class containing all the teams or competitors grouped together according to standing, skill, weight, age, or the like: a team in the first division; the heavyweight division in boxing.

Botany. a major primary subdivision of the plant kingdom, consisting of one or more classes; plant phylum.

Zoology. any subdivision of a classificatory group or category.

Horticulture. a type of propagation in which new plants are grown from segments separated from the parent plant.

the ornamentation of a melodic line in 17th- and 18th-century music.

OTHER WORDS FOR division

1 separation, apportionment, allotment, distribution.

4 boundary, demarcation.

5 compartment, segment.

6 breach, rift, disunion, rupture, estrangement, alienation.

See synonyms for division on Thesaurus.com

OPPOSITES FOR division

6 accord, union.

See antonyms for division on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?

There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?

Question 1 of 7

Which sentence is correct?

His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of division

1325–75; Middle English divisioun, devisioun (<Anglo-French ) <Latin dīvīsiōn- (stem of dīvīsiō), equivalent to dīvīs(us) (see divisible) + -iōn--ion

synonym study for division

1. Division, partition suggest dividing into parts. Division usually means marking off or separating a whole into parts. Partition often adds the idea of allotting or assigning parts following division: partition of an estate, of a country.

OTHER WORDS FROM division

di·vi·sion·al, di·vi·sion·ar·y, adjectivedi·vi·sion·al·ly, adverbhy·per·di·vi·sion, nounin·ter·di·vi·sion, noun

in·ter·di·vi·sion·al, adjectivein·ter·di·vi·sion·al·ly, adverbmis·di·vi·sion, nounnon·di·vi·sion, nounnon·di·vi·sion·al, adjectivepre·di·vi·sion, nounpro·di·vi·sion, adjectivere·di·vi·sion, nounself-di·vi·sion, nounsem·i·di·vi·sion, nounsu·per·di·vi·sion, noun

Words nearby division

divinylbenzene, divinyl ether, divisi, divisibility, divisible, division, division algebra, division algorithm, divisionism, division of labor, division of labour

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

MORE ABOUT DIVISION

What is division?

Division is the act of dividing, or separating, a whole into pieces, as in Mom made a chart that shows the division of chores is fair.

A division is a piece of a whole, often with all divisions being equal in size.

A division is also something used as a dividing line or mark between areas, such as a line of chalk on the sidewalk.

Division can also be used figuratively to refer to a separation caused by a difference of opinion or disagreement, as in The division in our family was caused by a fight over whose macaroni and cheese was better.

In arithmetic, division is the process that involves determining how many times one number is contained in another. For example, if we wanted to know how many times 2 is contained in 8, we would use division to find out, dividing 8 into groups of 2.

Example: All questions related to funding and accounts should be sent to the accounting division.

Where does division come from?

The first records of the term division come from the 1300s. It ultimately comes from the Latin dīvidere, meaning “to divide.” Whether a division refers to a literal or figurative dividing, one part is separated from the whole.

In sports, play is divided up into divisions. In high school sports, a district is broken up into divisions based on how many students a school has, and that district is part of a larger division that is based on the geographic area. In college sports, divisions are created by geography, population, and funding. Finally, in professional sports, divisions are created by geography, both within countries and worldwide, depending on the sport.

In a business or organization, division can be used as a synonym for department. A division of an organization is a group of individuals who work together to accomplish a shared task for the organization, such as a sales division, which focuses on selling products.

Did you know … ?

What are some other forms related to division?

divisional (adjective)
divisionally (adverb)
hyperdivision (noun)
interdivision (noun)

What are some synonyms for division?

What are some words that share a root or word element with division?

What are some words that often get used in discussing division?

How is division used in real life?

Division is a common word with many uses and senses.

i just found out that the division symbol (÷) is just a blank fraction with dots replacing the numerator and denominator. oh my god.

— abdul 🌌🔭 (@Advil) September 11, 2017

Dallas will host Philadelphia next week in an NFC East Championship game.
Winner takes the division.

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) December 22, 2013

Set-up crew dispatched to Austin, PR division arrived in NYC for 48hr media trip with @AlexanderRossi. Sun's beating down on Manhattan ☀️🗽

— Manor Racing (@ManorRacing) October 18, 2015

Try using division!

Which of the following is NOT a synonym for division?

A. department
B. whole
C. segment
D. branch

How to use division in a sentence

The division is responsible for protecting the rights of voters.
No Democrats Allowed: A Conservative Lawyer Holds Secret Voter Fraud Meetings With State Election Officials|by Mike Spies, Jake Pearson and Jessica Huseman|September 15, 2020|ProPublica
The division plans to co-found five to six companies over the next five years and invest $5 million to $8 million in each.
She was one of the world’s few female bank CEOs. Now she’s founding a fintech venture group|Claire Zillman, reporter|September 15, 2020|Fortune
This “IoT Services” division is not being sold to Nvidia as part of the deal, and will remain owned by Softbank.
Nvidia’s purchase of Arm creates an A.I. computing juggernaut|Jeremy Kahn|September 14, 2020|Fortune
Hemmerling is a former police officer and currently in charge of the criminal and community justice divisions.
Those Ticketed for Seditious Language Say Their Only Crime Was Talking Back|Kate Nucci|September 9, 2020|Voice of San Diego

Los Angeles has all-world D-lineman Aaron Donald leading what was a top-10 EPA defense last year, which will help the Rams factor into this division battle despite the hell they’ve found themselves in financially.
What To Watch For In An Abnormally Normal 2020 NFL Season|Neil Paine (neil.paine@fivethirtyeight.com)|September 9, 2020|FiveThirtyEight
Except the Braves did not win 14 straight pennants (they did win 14 straight division titles), and Smoltz is a also Republican.
Conservative Curt Says His Politics, Not His Pitching, Kept Him Out of the Hall of Fame|Ben Jacobs|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
President Eisenhower sent the 101st Airborne Division to force Faubus to admit the students to Central High School.
The ‘No Child’ Rewrite Threatens Your Kids’ Future|Jonah Edelman|January 3, 2015|DAILY BEAST
So here, for your Christmas Eve pleasure, are 20 of my favorites, 10 from the ecclesiastical division and 10 secular.
Yes, I Like Christmas Music. Stop Laughing.|Michael Tomasky|December 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Excerpted by permission of Harper Books, a division of HarperCollins Publishers.
How Richard Pryor Beat Bill Cosby and Transformed America|David Yaffe, Scott Saul|December 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Published by Clarkson Potter/Publishers, a division of Penguin Random House, LLC.
Make These Barefoot Contessa Chicken Pot Pies|Ina Garten|November 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
With each division, in addition to the divisional staff, there were officers detached from the headquarters staff.
Napoleon's Marshals|R. P. Dunn-Pattison
Given one more Division we might try: as things are, my troops won't cover the mileage.
Gallipoli Diary, Volume I|Ian Hamilton
In her he felt again, more distinctly than before, another person—division, conflict.
The Wave|Algernon Blackwood
A second main division of our schooling was mathematical instruction of a sort.
The Salvaging Of Civilisation|H. G. (Herbert George) Wells
The fillip given would have been far, far greater than that which the mere numbers (1,200 for the Division) would seem to imply.
Gallipoli Diary, Volume I|Ian Hamilton

British Dictionary definitions for division

division

/ (dɪˈvɪʒən) /

noun

the act of dividing or state of being divided

the act of sharing out; distribution

something that divides or keeps apart, such as a boundary

one of the parts, groups, etc, into which something is divided

a part of a government, business, country, etc, that has been made into a unit for administrative, political, or other reasons

a formal vote in Parliament or a similar legislative body

a difference of opinion, esp one that causes separation

(in sports) a section, category, or class organized according to age, weight, skill, etc

a mathematical operation, the inverse of multiplication, in which the quotient of two numbers or quantities is calculated. Usually written: a ÷ b, a b, a / b

army a major formation, larger than a regiment or brigade but smaller than a corps, containing the necessary arms to sustain independent combat
navy a group of ships of similar type or a tactical unit of naval aircraft
air force an organization normally comprising two or more wings with required support units

(plural) navy the assembly of all crew members for the captain's inspection

biology (in traditional classification systems) a major category of the plant kingdom that contains one or more related classesCompare phylum (def. 1)

horticulture any type of propagation in plants in which a new plant grows from a separated part of the original

logic the fallacy of inferring that the properties of the whole are also true of the parts, as Britain is in debt, so John Smith is in debt

(esp in 17th-century English music) the art of breaking up a melody into quick phrases, esp over a ground bass

Derived forms of division

divisional or divisionary, adjectivedivisionally, adverb

Word Origin for division

C14: from Latin dīvīsiō, from dīvidere to divide

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

Scientific definitions for division

division

[ dĭ-vĭzh′ən ]

The act, process, or operation of finding out how many times one number or quantity is contained in another.

A taxonomic classification within the plant kingdom that ranks immediately above a class and corresponds to a phylum in other kingdoms. See Table at taxonomy.

division

OTHER WORDS FOR division

OPPOSITES FOR division

Origin of division

synonym study for division

OTHER WORDS FROM division

Words nearby division

MORE ABOUT DIVISION

What is division?

Where does division come from?

Did you know … ?

How is division used in real life?

Try using division!

Words related to division

How to use division in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for division

Derived forms of division

Word Origin for division

Scientific definitions for division