divorce
//dɪˈvɔːs//
Forms
- Plural
- divorces
- present (v1)
- divorce
- past (v2)
- divorced
- past participle (v3)
- divorced
- present participle
- divorcing
- 3rd person singular
- divorces
Definitions
1.The legal dissolution of a marriage.
- Richard obtained a divorce from his wife some years ago, but hasn't returned to the dating scene.
2.A separation of connected things.
- The Civil War split between Virginia and West Virginia was a divorce based along cultural and economic as well as geographic lines.
3.The separation of a bonded pair of animals.
1.To legally dissolve a marriage between two people.
- A ship captain can marry couples, but cannot divorce them.
- As Fire Island’s reputation grew, so did the fame of its residents. In 1977, after divorcing his first wife, Calvin Klein bought one of Gifford’s beachfront homes.
2.To end one's own marriage to (a person) in this way.
- Lucy divorced Steve when she discovered that he had been unfaithful.
3.To separate something that was connected.
- The radical group voted to divorce itself from the main faction and start an independent movement.
4.To obtain a legal divorce.
- Edna and Simon divorced last year; he got the house, and she retained the business.
Frequency
Overall
Uncommon· #3272
By learning goal
- Everyday conversation
- Rare
- General reading & writing
- Uncommon
- Academic
- Rare
- Literature
- Rare
Etymology
Derived from Old French divorce
From Latin dīvortium
From dīvertere (“to turn aside”)
From dī- (“apart”) + vertere (“to turn”); see verse.