Meaning of split in English
Verb
splitEtymology
late 16th century (originally in the sense ‘break up a ship’, describing the force of a storm or rock): from Middle Dutch splitten, of unknown ultimate originDefinitions
1. separate into parts or portionsExamples
- « divide the cake into three equal parts »
- « The British carved up the Ottoman Empire after World War I »
Antonyms
- 2. separate or cut with a tool, such as a sharp instrument
Examples
- « cleave the bone »
- 3. discontinue an association or relation
Examples
- « go different ways »
- « The business partners broke over a tax question »
- « The couple separated after 25 years of marriage »
- « My friend and I split up »
- 4. go one's own away
Examples
- « move apart »
- « The friends separated after the party »
- 5. break open or apart suddenly
Examples
- « The bubble burst »
Classifying Adjective
splitDefinitions
1. being divided or separatedExamples
- « split between love and hate »
Synonyms
- 2. having been divided
Examples
- « having the unity destroyed »
- « Congress...gave the impression of...a confusing sum of disconnected local forces-Samuel Lubell »
- « a league of disunited nations- E.B.White »
- « a fragmented coalition »
- « a split group »
Synonyms
- 3. broken or burst apart longitudinally
Examples
- « after the thunderstorm we found a tree with a split trunk »
- « they tore big juicy chunks from the heart of the split watermelon »
Synonyms
- 4. having a long rip or tear
Examples
- « a split lip »
Synonyms
- 5. (especially of wood) cut or ripped longitudinally with the grain
Examples
- « we bought split logs for the fireplace »
Synonyms
Noun
splitDefinitions
1. extending the legs at right angles to the trunks (one in front and the other in back)- 2. a bottle containing half the usual amount
- 3. a promised or claimed share of loot or money
Examples
- « he demanded his split before they disbanded »
- 4. a lengthwise crack in wood
Examples
- « he inserted the wedge into a split in the log »
- 5. an opening made forcibly as by pulling apart
Examples
- « there was a rip in his pants »
- « she had snags in her stockings »
- 6. an old Croatian city on the Adriatic Sea
- 7. a dessert of sliced fruit and ice cream covered with whipped cream and cherries and nuts
- 8. (tenpin bowling) a divided formation of pins left standing after the first bowl
Examples
- « he was winning until he got a split in the tenth frame »
- 9. an increase in the number of outstanding shares of a corporation without changing the shareholders' equity
Examples
- « they announced a two-for-one split of the common stock »
- 10. the act of rending or ripping or splitting something
Examples
- « he gave the envelope a vigorous rip »
- 11. division of a group into opposing factions
Examples
- « another schism like that and they will wind up in bankruptcy »