divide
divide
verb
OPAL W OPAL S
/dɪˈvaɪd/
separate
1 intransitive, transitive to separate into parts; to make something separate into parts
SYNONYM split up
The cells began to divide rapidly.
divide into something The questions divide into two categories: easy and hard.
divide up After lunch we divided up for group discussions.
divide something (into something) I divided the class into four groups.
Divide the dough into four pieces.
The book is divided into 11 sections.
divide something up (into something) A sentence can be divided up into meaningful segments.
TOPICS Biology B1
Collocations
adverb
broadly
roughly
exactly
preposition
into
phrases
divide in two
2 transitive divide something to separate something into parts and give a share to each of a number of different people, etc.
SYNONYM share
They could not agree on how to divide the land.
divide something up Jack divided up the rest of the cash.
divide something (up) between somebody We divided the work between us.
divide something (up) among somebody Profits were divided up among the staff.
The money was divided equally among his sons.
Collocations
adverb
equally
preposition
among
between
3 transitive to use different parts of your time, energy, etc. for different activities, etc.
divide something As working parents we think carefully about how we divide our time.
divide something between A and B He divides his energies between politics and business.
4 intransitive (of a road or river) to separate into two or more parts that lead in different directions
Where the path divides, keep right.
divide into something The river divides into several channels.
TOPICS Transport by car or lorry B1
5 ​transitive divide A from B (formal) to separate two people or things
Can it ever be right to divide a mother from her child?
The landowners were divided from the mass of poor peasants who lived in the surrounding area.
6 ​transitive to be the real or imaginary line or barrier that separates two people or things
SYNONYM separate
divide something (off) A fence divides off the western side of the grounds.
divide A from B The English Channel divides England from France.
mathematics
7 transitive, intransitive to find out how many times one number is contained in another
divide something by something 30 divided by 6 is 5 (= 30 ÷ 6 = 5).
divide by something It's easy to divide by ten.
The children are learning how to multiply and divide.
TOPICS Maths and measurement B1
8 ​intransitive, transitive divide (something) into something to be able to be multiplied to give another number
5 divides into 30 6 times.
TOPICS Maths and measurement B1
disagreement
9 transitive to make people disagree
SYNONYM split
divide somebody/something to divide the nation/country
This issue has bitterly divided the community.
The building divides opinion (= some people like it and some do not).
be divided on/over something The party is deeply divided on this question.
to be evenly/sharply divided over the issue
TOPICS Opinion and argument B2
Collocations
adverb
bitterly
deeply
seriously
phrases
be divided about something
be divided on something
be divided over something…
10 ​intransitive (+ adv./prep.) (of two or more people) to disagree
Communities frequently divided along religious lines.
Idioms
divide and rule
split/divide (something) down the middle
divide
noun
/dɪˈvaɪd/
usually singular
difference
1 a difference between two groups of people or two things that separates them from each other
He offered advice on bridging cultural divides.
to straddle/cross a divide
The referendum revealed a deep urban-rural divide.
divide between A and B Will this deepen the divide between the country's rich and poor?
SEE ALSO digital divide, North-South Divide
Collocations
adjective
big
deep
great
verb + divide
create
widen
close
divide + verb
widen
narrow
open
preposition
divide between
divide in
between rivers
2 ​(especially North American English) a line of high land that separates two systems of rivers
SYNONYM watershed
Idioms
bridge the gap/gulf/divide
Word Origin
Middle English (as a verb): from Latin dividere ‘force apart, remove’. The noun dates from the mid 17th cent.