separate
Americanverb (used with object)
-
separates,
present (3rd person singular)
-
separated,
past participle, past
-
separating
present participle
-
to keep apart or divide, as by an intervening barrier or space.
to separate two fields by a fence.
-
to put, bring, or force apart; part.
to separate two fighting boys.
-
to set apart; disconnect; dissociate.
to separate church and state.
-
to remove or sever from association, service, etc., especially legally or formally.
He was separated from the army right after V-E Day.
-
to sort, part, divide, or disperse (an assemblage, mass, compound, etc.), as into individual units, components, or elements.
-
to take by parting or dividing; extract (usually followed by from orout ).
to separate metal from ore.
-
Mathematics. to write (the variables of a differential equation) in a form in which the differentials of the independent and dependent variables are, respectively, functions of these variables alone.
We can separate the variables to solve the equation.
verb (used without object)
-
separates,
present (3rd person singular)
-
separated,
past participle, past
-
separating
present participle
-
to part company; withdraw from personal association (often followed byfrom ).
to separate from a church.
-
(of a married pair) to stop living together but without getting a divorce.
-
to draw or come apart; become divided, disconnected, or detached.
-
to become parted from a mass or compound.
Cream separates from milk.
-
to take or go in different directions.
We have to separate at the crossroad.
adjective
-
detached, disconnected, or disjoined.
- Synonyms:
- discrete, unattached
-
unconnected; distinct; unique.
two separate questions.
-
being or standing apart; distant or dispersed.
two separate houses;
The desert has widely separate oases.
-
existing or maintained independently.
separate organizations.
- Synonyms:
- independent
-
individual or particular.
each separate item.
-
not shared; individual or private.
separate checks;
separate rooms.
-
Sometimes Separate noting or relating to a church or other organization no longer associated with the original or parent organization.
noun
-
Usually separates women's outer garments that may be worn in combination with a variety of others to make different ensembles, as matching and contrasting blouses, skirts, and sweaters.
-
a bibliographical unit, as an article, chapter, or other portion of a larger work, printed from the same type but issued separately, sometimes with additional pages.
verb
-
(tr) to act as a barrier between
a range of mountains separates the two countries
-
to put or force or be put or forced apart
-
to part or be parted from a mass or group
-
(tr) to discriminate between
to separate the men from the boys
-
to divide or be divided into component parts; sort or be sorted
-
to sever or be severed
-
(intr) (of a married couple) to cease living together by mutual agreement or after obtaining a decree of judicial separation
adjective
-
existing or considered independently
a separate problem
-
disunited or apart
-
set apart from the main body or mass
-
distinct, individual, or particular
-
solitary or withdrawn
-
(sometimes capital) designating or relating to a Church or similar institution that has ceased to have associations with an original parent organization
Synonym Usage
Separate, divide imply a putting apart or keeping apart of things from each other. To separate is to remove from each other things previously associated: to separate a mother from her children. To divide is to split or break up carefully according to measurement, rule, or plan: to divide a cake into equal parts.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
separatenessnoun
-
unseparatenessnoun
-
reseparateverb
-
preseparateverb (used with object)
-
nonseparatingadjective
-
unseparateadjective
-
unseparatedadjective
-
unseparatingadjective
-
well-separatedadjective
-
separatelyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
separatesimple
-
separatessimple
-
have separatedperfect
-
has separatedperfect
-
am separatingprogressive
-
are separatingprogressive
-
is separatingprogressive
-
have been separatingperfect progressive
-
has been separatingperfect progressive
Past
-
separatedsimple
-
had separatedperfect
-
was separatingprogressive
-
were separatingprogressive
-
had been separatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of separate
First recorded in 1400–50; from late Middle English (noun and adjective), from Latin sēparātus, past participle of sēparāre, equivalent to sē- se- + parāre “to furnish, produce, obtain”; see prepare
Explanation
Things that are separate are kept apart from other things. A married couple heading for divorce might eat breakfast at separate tables. You can use the adjective separate to describe something that is thought of as different or not related to other things. The adjective is from the Latin prefix se- "apart" plus parare "to prepare." Separate is also used as a verb, pronounced "SEP-uh-rate." Separate is one of the most commonly misspelled words, so beware of the erroneous spelling, seperate.
Vocabulary lists containing separate
"The Civil Rights Movement"
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
"All Summer in a Day" by Ray Bradbury
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Remote Learning: Synonyms for "Far"
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The city attorney also prosecutes misdemeanors — a job most other cities keep separate.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 27, 2026
That makes it challenging to separate, identify, and distinguish one compound from another within an already complex plant sample.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 26, 2026
Judges in at least nine separate cases have blocked all or parts of government subpoenas.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 26, 2026
"His handcuffing in hospital at a point when he must have been close to death, all require separate examination."
From BBC ● Sep. 25, 2026
The chosen few moved to a separate floor in Morgan Stanley’s midtown Manhattan office, eight floors above their old trading desks.
From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis
“One thing that separates him from a lot of other leaders ... he’s the same person, each and every day, consistently great at everything he does,” said reserve quarterback DJ Uiagalelei.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 26, 2026
The blood-brain barrier is a tightly controlled protective boundary that separates circulating blood from brain tissue.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 22, 2026
There are many things that Manchester City and Manchester United have in common - but one thing decisively separates them this season.
From BBC ● Sep. 13, 2026
Two medieval castles face each other—one on each side of the river that separates Estonia from Russia.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2026
Just a few stragglers, leaning on the wall that separates us.
From "The One and Only Ivan" by Katherine Applegate
Rather than ending with one separated pair, the original connection breaks and new particle pairs form.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 26, 2026
The new stops designed to accommodate bikes and buses are about five inches off the ground and separated from the road by a curb.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 25, 2026
“We have been separated for a while, and it’s proven to be the right move for us and our family unit. We’ve got each other forever—and it’s GOOD,” the pair said.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 22, 2026
Susan and her husband Geraint's home, which they have lived in for 53 years, is separated from the decommissioned Ruabon chemical works by a thin tree line.
From BBC ● Sep. 18, 2026
Bisguier jumped in and separated the two men.
From "Endgame" by Frank Brady
Paul Turner of Birmingham is separating himself from all City Section receivers with his big-play catching ability.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 23, 2026
The results indicate that the process of separating and selecting planetary ingredients began almost as soon as solid bodies started forming.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 23, 2026
"You see the water there?" he said, gesturing at the Gulf separating the UAE from the coasts of southern Iran.
From Barron's ● Sep. 13, 2026
Postage stamps used to come apart with a string of muted pops, their perforations separating serially like tiny zippers.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026
Each of her footsteps made a sound like Velcro strips separating.
From "Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky" by Kwame Mbalia
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
