separate
- 01 A2 Elementary
v.to move things or people away from each other so they are no longer together.
v.to cause things or people to be apart; to disunite or disconnect a group or mass.
Simple“The teacher had to separate the two students because they wouldn't stop talking.”
In context“The police line was established to separate the protesters from the counter-protesters and prevent any physical confrontation.”
UsageOften used with the preposition 'from'.
PitfallI need to seperate the laundry. I need to separate the laundry.A common spelling error is using 'e' instead of 'a' in the middle; remember 'there is a rat in separate'.
- 02 B1 Intermediate
v.to stop living with your husband, wife, or partner.
v.to cease living together as a married or cohabiting couple.
Simple“My parents decided to separate last year, but they are still good friends.”
In context“After years of trying to resolve their differences, the couple decided to separate legally before filing for a full divorce.”
UsageIntransitive in this sense.
- 03 A2 Elementary
adj.not joined to something else; existing by itself.
adj.existing as an independent entity; not shared or joined.
Simple“The children sleep in separate rooms now that they are older.”
In context“The researchers published their findings in three separate reports to ensure each experiment received detailed attention.”
Teacher's tipNote the pronunciation difference: the verb ends in /-eɪt/ while the adjective ends in /-ət/.
Synonyms - 04 B2 Upper Intermediate
n.clothes that are sold individually rather than as a set, like a skirt and a blouse.
n.individual articles of clothing, such as skirts, trousers, or jackets, designed to be worn in various combinations.
Simple“She prefers buying separates so she can mix and match her work outfits.”
In context“The boutique specialises in high-end separates, allowing customers to coordinate different sizes for jackets and trousers.”
UsageUsually used in the plural form.
Usage separate issue · separate pieces · separate shots
From Middle English separaten (“to separate”), from separat (“separated”) + -en, from Latin sēparātus, perfect passive participle of sēparō (“to separate”) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix)), from sē- (“apart”) + parō (“prepare”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *per- (“produce, procure, bring forward, bring forth”). Displaced Middle English scheden, from Old English scēadan (whence English shed). Doublet of sever, also derived from the same Latin verb.
From Middle English separat, see -ate (“adjective-forming suffix”) and Etymology 1 for more.
From a substantivization of the above adjective, see -ate (“noun-forming suffix”) and Etymology 1 for more.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.