separate

Formsseparates, separating, separated

Pluralseparates

1. 1
   not sharedadjective

   Forming a unit by itself; not joined, connected, shared or together with something else.

   Each guest received a separate copy of the schedule.

   The studio is completely separate from the main house.

2. 2
   verbtransitive

   To cause people or things to be apart from one another.

   Referees rushed in to separate the brawling players.

   A sudden storm separated the hikers, and they spent hours searching for each other.

   UsageSeparate two people, or separate one person from another.

   Similarpart, segregate, disunite

   Oppositeunite, join, connect, reunite

3. 3
   verbtransitive

   To be located between two people, places, or things and keep them apart, acting as a boundary or a gap.

   A narrow strait separates the island from the mainland.

   At the reception, two empty tables separate the feuding families.

   UsageThe thing in between is the subject: a fence separates our yard from theirs; a few feet separate the desks.

   Similardivide

   Oppositeconnect, join, link

4. 4
   verbtransitive

   To take a thing out of a group or mass it was part of; to disconnect it from the rest.

   Workers separate the recyclable metal from the rest of the trash.

   The surgeon carefully separated the nerve from the surrounding tissue.

   UsageUsually separate something from the rest; from marks what it is taken out of.

   Similardisconnect, sever

   Oppositejoin, attach, connect

   Note

   Soame's translation of Boileau, The Art of Poetry (1683), revised by Dryden, uses it for refining, separating the alloy from fine gold. The King James Bible of 1611 turns it inward: "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?" The same pattern serves metal, tissue and affection alike.

5. 5
   verbtransitive

   To distinguish between people or things, or to be the quality that sets one apart from the rest.

   Smart investors learn to separate real opportunities from hype.

   Attention to detail is what separates a good chef from a great one.

   UsageOften what separates A from B is a quality. Set phrases: separate the wheat from the chaff, separate the men from the boys.

   Similardistinguish, differentiate

   Note

   Two set phrases use the same frame. Separate the wheat from the chaff comes from threshing and means keeping only what has value; separate the men from the boys names a challenge that shows who is mature or courageous.

6. 6
   split up (couple)verbintransitive

   Of a married couple or other partners, to start living apart, often as a step toward divorce.

   The couple separated last spring but have not yet filed for divorce.

   Some couples separate for a trial period before deciding whether to end the marriage.

   UsageThe couple separated, or she separated from her husband; for the state, say they are separated.

   Similarsplit, part

   Oppositereconcile

7. 7
   verbtransitive

   To divide a single thing into two or more distinct parts.

   Teachers separate the class into small groups for the activity.

   He separated the mixture into its component liquids.

   UsageThe parts usually follow into: separate the class into groups. Taking one part out of a whole uses from instead.

   Similardivide, split, partition, section

   Oppositecombine, join, unite, merge

8. 8
   verbintransitive

   To divide on its own into separate pieces or distinct substances.

   Over time, the cream separates from the milk and rises to the top.

   If you heat the sauce too fast, the butter will separate and leave an oily layer on top.

   UsageNo object: the sauce separates, cream separates from the milk, a mixture separates into layers.

   Oppositecombine, merge, mix, blend

   Note

   Fall apart and disintegrate suggest ruin. Separate points instead to distinct pieces or substances, often settling into layers.

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