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separation

separation

8 3.2
The act of putting things into different groups
  • noun
  • /ˌsɛpəˈreɪʃən/
translation icon : separación
  • The team conducted a thorough separation of recyclable materials from general waste to reduce landfill use.
  • separation process
  • separation of powers
  • physical separation

Securities exchange regulations require a separation of three key functions.

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Examples

  • There are many important questions about values that can be better investigated if such separation is done.

    Academic text (1991)
  • Late the next day, the institute announced a successful separation.

  • I think I'd always try to have some separation to what I did in sport and what I did away from sport.

  • Test materials are produced by a number of physical and chemical separation techniques.

    Academic text (1991)
  • We're going to have to go through this separation of the tech, the high tech and the low tech.

  • Securities exchange regulations require a separation of three key functions.

  • I want you to contemplate what causes the separation of the two components.

  • Each school has an Eco-Team to set up and implement a source separation system.

    Academic text (1999)
  • The pilot project in Maui shows that source separation of leftover materials during residential construction actually saves money.

    Academic text (1999)
  • The scientific experiment required a complete separation of the two substances to observe their individual reactions.

Synonyms

breakup
vsseparation
39 3.6

A separation into parts when something falls apart

describes division with collapse or ending, not just orderly sorting
partition
vsseparation
20 4.3

Dividing something into separate parts, often with a border

is the more general act of sorting without implying a physical barrier
cleavage
vsseparation
4 4.9

A split into parts along natural lines, for example in rocks or cells

is the broader act of sorting without implying physical breakage
segmentation
vsseparation
3 6.1

Dividing something into separate parts

is broader, meaning general sorting rather than ordered sectional division
partitioning
vsseparation
3 6.0

Dividing something into parts or groups

is broader and describes general sorting without stressing clear boundaries
compartmentalization
vsseparation
1 8.0

Dividing something into separate parts to keep things organized

is broader, referring to any sorting rather than intentional isolation for order
disaggregation
vsseparation
  • Specialized
1 7.9

Breaking a whole into smaller separate parts

focuses on breaking down into components rather than general sorting
scission
vsseparation
1 9.8

The cutting or splitting of something into parts

is the general process of sorting and does not always imply cutting
splitting
vsseparation
3.4

The act of dividing something into parts or groups

is the general action of sorting that may not stress method or purpose
fractionalization
vsseparation
  • Specialized
9.0

The breaking of a group or society into smaller, competing groups

focuses on many small pieces and social division rather than neutral sorting
disparation
vsseparation
9.9

A difference between people, groups, or places

focuses on resulting difference or distinctness rather than the act of sorting

Antonyms

553 2.3

A mixture of things or parts that form one thing

47 4.0

Putting two or more parts together so they work as one

Compounds

1 4.9

An official decision by a court or agreement that lets a married couple live apart while still married

grade separation
  • Specialized
1 6.1

A place where a road and a railway cross at different levels using a bridge or tunnel

A court order that lets married people live apart but stay married

separation energy
  • Specialized
8.8

The amount of energy needed to remove a particle, for example an electron or neutron, from an atom

How Divided

isolation
172 3.7
segregation
  • Offensive
18 5.3
to partition
10 4.0
separation
8 3.2
sorting
22 2.0

Surface Forms

separation singular
separations plural

Morphology

separation = separate (transparent) = separate + ion

A straightforward nominalization indicating the process or act of sorting/dividing.

Etymology

Separation comes from Latin separare ('to put apart') and is related to separate. So separation can mean sorting or dividing things by putting them 'apart' from each other.