segregation

American  

[seg-ri-gey-shuhn] / ˌsɛg rɪˈgeɪ ʃən /

noun

1. the act or practice of segregating; a setting apart or separation of people or things from others or from the main body or group.

   gender segregation in some fundamentalist religions.

2. the institutional separation of an ethnic, racial, religious, or other minority group from the dominant majority.

3. the state or condition of being segregated, set apart, separated, or restricted to one group.

   Segregation on buses meant that the seats at the front were reserved for white passengers.

   the segregation of private clubs.

4. something segregated, or set apart.

5. Genetics. the separation of allelic genes into different gametes during meiosis.

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segregation British  

/ ˌsɛɡrɪˈɡeɪʃən /

noun

1. the act of segregating or state of being segregated

2. sociol the practice or policy of creating separate facilities within the same society for the use of a minority group

3. genetics the separation at meiosis of the two members of any pair of alleles into separate gametes See also Mendel's laws

4. metallurgy the process in which a component of an alloy or solid solution separates in small regions within the solid or on the solid's surface

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segregation Cultural  

1. The policy and practice of imposing the separation of races. In the United States, the policy of segregation denied African-Americans their civil rights and provided inferior facilities and services for them, most noticeably in public schools (see Brown versus Board of Education), housing, and industry. (See integration, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, and separate but equal.)

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Other Word Forms

• antisegregation noun
• nonsegregation noun
• resegregation noun
• segregational adjective
• unsegregational adjective

Etymology

Origin of segregation

First recorded in 1545–55; from Late Latin sēgregātiōn-, stem of sēgregātiō, from sēgregāt(us) “separated” (past participle of sēgregāre “to part from the flock”; segregate ) + -iō -ion

Example Sentences

Born May 4, 1937, in Houston, the eldest of four children, Edwards grew up surrounded by racial segregation.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 3, 2026

Its strongest leaders spoke not only about the sins of segregation but also about the responsibilities of freedom, understanding that justice without moral renewal would leave communities politically visible but internally broken.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 22, 2026

Because of this role, centromeres are essential for accurate chromosome segregation in all dividing cells, from yeast to humans.

From Science Daily • Mar. 10, 2026

Its written arguments state that the Act "does not mandate sex segregation", and "does not absolutely prohibit deviation from any norm".

From BBC • Feb. 2, 2026

Conspicuously absent from this list was the NAACP, the country’s dominant civil rights organization since 1909, but still dedicated to the slower tactic of filing legal challenges to segregation.

From "The Best of Enemies" by Osha Gray Davidson

Related Words

• apartheid
• discrimination
• isolation
• partition