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separate

American  

[sep-uh-reyt, sep-er-it] / ˈsɛp əˌreɪt, ˈsɛp ər ɪt /

verb (used with object)

• separates,
  present (3rd person singular)
• separated,
  past participle,  past
• separating
  present participle

1. 

   to keep apart or divide, as by an intervening barrier or space.

   to separate two fields by a fence.

   Synonyms:

   split, sunder, sever

   Antonyms:

   connect, unite

2. to put, bring, or force apart; part.

   to separate two fighting boys.

   Synonyms:

   split, sunder, sever

   Antonyms:

   connect, unite

3. to set apart; disconnect; dissociate.

   to separate church and state.

   Synonyms:

   disengage, disjoin

   Antonyms:

   connect, unite

4. to remove or sever from association, service, etc., especially legally or formally.

   He was separated from the army right after V-E Day.

5. to sort, part, divide, or disperse (an assemblage, mass, compound, etc.), as into individual units, components, or elements.

6. to take by parting or dividing; extract (usually followed by from orout ).

   to separate metal from ore.

7. 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.

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verb (used without object)

• separates,
  present (3rd person singular)
• separated,
  past participle,  past
• separating
  present participle

1. to part company; withdraw from personal association (often followed byfrom ).

   to separate from a church.

2. (of a married pair) to stop living together but without getting a divorce.

3. to draw or come apart; become divided, disconnected, or detached.

4. to become parted from a mass or compound.

   Cream separates from milk.

5. to take or go in different directions.

   We have to separate at the crossroad.

adjective

1. detached, disconnected, or disjoined.

   Synonyms:

   discrete, unattached

2. unconnected; distinct; unique.

   two separate questions.

3. being or standing apart; distant or dispersed.

   two separate houses;

   The desert has widely separate oases.

   Synonyms:

   isolated, secluded

4. existing or maintained independently.

   separate organizations.

   Synonyms:

   independent

5. individual or particular.

   each separate item.

6. not shared; individual or private.

   separate checks;

   separate rooms.

7. Sometimes Separate noting or relating to a church or other organization no longer associated with the original or parent organization.

noun

1. 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.

2. offprint.

3. 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.

separate British  

verb

1. (tr) to act as a barrier between

   a range of mountains separates the two countries

2. to put or force or be put or forced apart

3. to part or be parted from a mass or group

4. (tr) to discriminate between

   to separate the men from the boys

5. to divide or be divided into component parts; sort or be sorted

6. to sever or be severed

7. (intr) (of a married couple) to cease living together by mutual agreement or after obtaining a decree of judicial separation

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adjective

1. existing or considered independently

   a separate problem

2. disunited or apart

3. set apart from the main body or mass

4. distinct, individual, or particular

5. solitary or withdrawn

6. (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

• separateness
  noun
• unseparateness
  noun
• reseparate
  verb
• preseparate
  verb (used with object)
• nonseparating
  adjective
• unseparate
  adjective
• unseparated
  adjective
• unseparating
  adjective
• well-separated
  adjective
• separately
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Participles

• separating
  present
• separated
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• separate
  simple
• separates
  simple
• have separated
  perfect
• has separated
  perfect
• am separating
  progressive
• are separating
  progressive
• is separating
  progressive
• have been separating
  perfect progressive
• has been separating
  perfect progressive

Past

• separated
  simple
• had separated
  perfect
• was separating
  progressive
• were separating
  progressive
• had been separating
  perfect progressive

Future

• will separate
  simple
• will have separated
  perfect
• will be separating
  progressive
• will have been separating
  perfect progressive

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.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

separate separates separated separating

In a randomized study published in Nature Metabolism in March 2025, 75 young adults consumed drinks containing sucralose, an equally sweet amount of sugar, or water on separate visits.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 14, 2026

The authority has teamed up with Bloomberg Philanthropies to set up a separate pot for 15 to 24-year-olds, the Youth Climate Action Fund, which offers grants of up to £2,500.

From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2026

“What makes the collaboration so special is that we don’t simply bring our separate perspectives to the table—we truly meld into each other in the work,” Robb says.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 14, 2026

Prosecutors had been considering a misdemeanor charge against Abbott under the federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act and a separate count for allegedly misleading the government, the Journal reported.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026

My mom was very careful to keep her work life and her home life separate, and any officer who thought praising me was a good tactical move was off base.

From "Glitch" by Laura Martin

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

No glass separates gawkers from seven full-size, screen-used vehicles.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 8, 2026

Anak Krakatau, which means Child of Krakatau, sits in a strait that separates the islands of Java and Sumatra.

From Barron's ● Sep. 7, 2026

No provider separates the companies buying for themselves from the hosts renting the same chips out again, so the proportion is unknown from outside, and the market prices it as though the answer were zero.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 3, 2026

Tu Celia Celia’s Letters: 1942-1949 101 February 11, 1949 Mi querido Gustavo, I’ve been reading the plays of Moliere and wondering what separates suffering from imagination.

From "Dreaming in Cuban" by Cristina García

When the participants were separated into three groups according to their level of systemic aging, another pattern emerged.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 14, 2026

In the markets of old Dubai, saffron, cumin, pistachios and almonds from Iran still fill the stalls, as if the two shores of the Gulf were not separated by war.

From Barron's ● Sep. 13, 2026

Matthews said until the Blythe prison site’s infrastructure is separated from neighboring Ironwood State Prison and its bond obligations are resolved, the property can’t move through the state’s process for dispensing with surplus property.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 13, 2026

Benn and Garcia had to be separated at their launch event in New York in July, but there was no repeat this time.

From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2026

“We got separated after we went through the moon portal in Rio,” Pili said.

From "The Way to Rio Luna" by Zoraida Cordova

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

The jet then tore through a perimeter fence, bashing an SUV traveling on a public road and hitting a second fence line separating an area where robotaxis were parked, she said.

From Barron's ● Sep. 7, 2026

After separating from the glacier, the berg moved down Petermann Fjord toward Nares Strait at an average speed of about 3 kilometers per day during its first week.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 4, 2026

Nvidia has started reporting its data-center sales in two parts, separating the large cloud providers from everyone else.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 3, 2026

Out beyond the frontline trenches, no man’s land separating the opposing armies might be anywhere from a mile or more across to barely twenty-five yards wide.

From "The War to End All Wars: World War I" by Russell Freedman

Related Words

• autonomous
• different
• distinct
• diverse
• free
• independent
• particular
• single
• unique
• various