divorce

¹

[dih-vawrs]

noun

1. the act of legally ending a marriage.

   After the divorce, they shared custody of the children.

2. any formal separation of spouses according to established custom.

3. the act of legally ending a formal contract before its term is up, especially in professional sports.

   If there’s a personality clash between the player and the manager, divorce may be the only way out.

   It’s a guide to corporate divorce, laying out who pays what to whom at the early termination of a contract.

4. a total separation between two things; disunion.

   Activists denounced the divorce between thought and action when it came to protecting human rights.

verb (used with object)

divorced, divorcing 

1. to legally end the marriage contract between oneself and (one's spouse).

   She divorced her husband.

2. to permanently separate (a couple) through a judicial declaration that ends their marriage contract.

   The judge divorced the couple.

3. to separate or cut off.

   His view of the situation has become totally divorced from reality.

   Synonyms: disjoin, detach, sever, disconnect, divide, dissociate, rupture, disjunction, dissolution, breakup, annulment

verb (used without object)

divorced, divorcing 

1. to legally end one’s marriage.

   After 16 years together, they divorced.

   I never thought about money till I divorced.

divorcé

²

[dih-vawr-sey, -vohr-, -vawr-sey, -vohr-]

noun

1. a divorced man.

divorce

¹

/ dɪˈvɔːs /

noun

1. the dissolution of a marriage by judgment of a court or by accepted custom

2. a judicial decree declaring a marriage to be dissolved

3. a separation, esp one that is total or complete

verb

1. to separate or be separated by divorce; give or obtain a divorce (to a couple or from one's spouse)

2. (tr) to remove or separate, esp completely

divorcé

²

/ dɪˈvɔːseɪ /

noun

1. a man who has been divorced

Gender Note

See fiancée.

Other Word Forms

• divorcer noun
• divorcive adjective
• divorceable adjective
• nondivorced adjective
• undivorceable adjective
• undivorced adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of divorce¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin dīvortium “separation,” from dīvort(ere) variant of dīvertere “to turn away” ( divert ) + -ium -ium

Origin of divorce²

First recorded in 1805–15; from French, noun use of masculine past participle of divorcer, from Medieval Latin dīvortiāre “to divorce,” derivative of Latin dīvortium “separation”; divorce

Word History and Origins

Origin of divorce¹

C14: from Old French, from Latin dīvortium from dīvertere to separate; see _divert

Example Sentences

Karen's parents were divorced and she had a turbulent upbringing plagued with custody issues that saw her go into care at the age of 10.

Read more on BBC

This at a time when divorce was considered a social disgrace and was difficult to obtain in many states.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related: Should my husband of 46 years and I divorce to get more Social Security benefits?

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Even though I was in third grade, their separation and divorce affected me.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Buffett spelled it out in his 2014 letter to Berkshire shareholders with all the subtlety of a divorce lawyer explaining alimony.

Read more on MarketWatch

Related Words

• annulment 
• breakup 
• dissolution 
• separation 
• split