split

The word “split” means to divide something into parts, often along a line. In plain terms, to divide something, or a division itself — used for anything from firewood to relationships to gymnastics moves.

“Split” is pronounced spliht (/splɪt/ in IPA).

Here is “split” used in a sentence: “Split the wood along the grain with the axe.”

Words with a similar meaning to “split” include cleft, cloven, divided and sundered.

The opposite of “split” — its antonyms — is manifold.

Depending on how it is used, “split” can be a verb, a noun and an adjective.

The word “split” dates back to around 1567 and comes from Proto-Germanic. Attested from around 1567, from Middle Dutch or Middle Low German splitten, "to split," ultimately from a Proto-Germanic root related to "splice" and "splinter.".

“Split” is a fairly common word in modern English, usually learned at around the A2 level.

Divide is the general word for separating something into parts, and can be neat or mathematical, as in dividing a number. Split often suggests forceful separation, usually into two along a line or crack — splitting wood or a bill. All splitting is dividing, but dividing need not involve any force.

A crack is a line or fissure where something has partly broken but usually still holds together, like a cracked mug. A split goes further, separating the material fully into pieces or along its length. A crack can widen into a split, but a split means the parts have actually come apart.

The main opposites describe bringing things together: join, unite, and merge. Where split separates something into parts, these words combine parts into a whole. Related opposites include connect and fuse for physical joining, and reconcile when a split refers to people or groups falling out and then coming back together.

Splitting a log with an axe divides it into pieces along the grain. Other examples include splitting a bill between friends, a road that splits into two lanes, or a group that splits into smaller teams. Figuratively, a couple or party can also split, meaning they separate or break apart.