verb (used with object),sep·a·rat·ed,sep·a·rat·ing.
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 or out): 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.Compare separation of variables.
verb (used without object),sep·a·rat·ed,sep·a·rat·ing.
to part company; withdraw from personal association (often followed by from): 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.
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.
individual or particular: each separate item.
not shared; individual or private: separate checks; separate rooms.
(sometimes initial capital letter) noting or pertaining 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.
offprint (def. 1).
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.
Origin of separate
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English (noun and adjective), from Latin sēparātus (past participle of sēparāre), equivalent to sē-se- + par(āre) “to furnish, produce, obtain,” + -ātus;see prepare -ate1
SYNONYMS FOR separate
1, 2 sever, sunder, split.
3 disjoin, disengage.
13 unattached, severed, discrete.
15 secluded, isolated.
16 independent.
SEE SYNONYMS FOR separate ON THESAURUS.COM
ANTONYMS FOR separate
1-3 unite, connect.
SEE ANTONYMS FOR separate ON THESAURUS.COM
synonym study for separate
1, 2. 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 WORDS FROM separate
sep·a·rate·ly,adverbsep·a·rate·ness,nounnon·sep·a·rat·ing,adjectivepre·sep·a·rate,verb (used with object),pre·sep·a·rat·ed,pre·sep·a·rat·ing.
SEPA, sepal, sepaloid, -sepalous, separable, separate, separate but equal, separates, separate school, separate the men from the boys, separate the sheep from the goats
And he asked who would volunteer to follow two leaders in separate lines.
The Later Cave-Men|Katharine Elizabeth Dopp
Practically every field is treated as a separate farm in itself.
The Danes in Lancashire and Yorkshire|S. W. Partington
In the median band of both wings the spots do not flow together, but are separate and moderately heavy.
The Butterfly Book|William Jacob Holland
The system is dominated, in its separate units, and as a whole, by the great principle of the conservation of energy.
The Energy System of Matter|James Weir
Hold hands, palms upward, well down in front, fingers and thumbs well separated and slightly curved; separate hands slightly.
Indian Scout Talks|Charles A. Eastman
British Dictionary definitions for separate
separate
verb (ˈsɛpəˌreɪt)
(tr)to act as a barrier betweena 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 betweento 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 (ˈsɛprɪt, ˈsɛpərɪt)
existing or considered independentlya 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
Derived forms of separate
separately, adverbseparateness, noun
Word Origin for separate
C15: from Latin sēparāre, from sē- apart + parāre to obtain