Definition and meaning of separate

separate (adj.)

1.constituting a separate entity or part"a government with three discrete divisions" "on two distinct occasions"

2.standing apart; not attached to or supported by anything"a freestanding bell tower" "a house with a separate garage"

3.separated according to race, sex, class, or religion"separate but equal" "girls and boys in separate classes"

4.have the connection undone; having become separate

5.independent; not united or joint"a problem consisting of two separate issues" "they went their separate ways" "formed a separate church"

6.not living together as man and wife"decided to live apart" "maintaining separate households" "they are separated"

separate (v. trans.)

1.regard as unconnected"you must dissociate these two events!" "decouple our foreign policy from ideology"

separate (v.)

1.get a divorce; formally terminate a marriage"The couple divorced after only 6 months"

2.divide into two or more branches so as to form a fork"The road forks"

3.become separated into pieces or fragments"The figurine broke" "The freshly baked loaf fell apart"

4.mark as different"We distinguish several kinds of maple"

5.arrange or order by classes or categories"How would you classify these pottery shards--are they prehistoric?"

6.divide into components or constituents"Separate the wheat from the chaff"

7.force, take, or pull apart"He separated the fighting children" "Moses parted the Red Sea"

8.come apart"The two pieces that we had glued separated"

9.go one's own way; move apart"The friends separated after the party"

10.make a division or separation

11.discontinue an association or relation; go different ways"The business partners broke over a tax question" "The couple separated after 25 years of marriage" "My friend and I split up"

12.separate into parts or portions"divide the cake into three equal parts" "The British carved up the Ottoman Empire after World War I"

13.treat differently on the basis of sex or race

14.act as a barrier between; stand between"The mountain range divides the two countries"

separate (n.)

1.a garment that can be purchased separately and worn in combinations with other garments

2.a separately printed article that originally appeared in a larger publication