Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun The legal dissolution of a marriage.
  • noun A court order or other document establishing such a dissolution.
  • noun A separation between things that were once connected or associated.
  • intransitive verb To dissolve the marriage bond between (two people).
  • intransitive verb To end marriage with (one's spouse) by way of legal divorce.
  • intransitive verb To cut off; separate or disunite: synonym: separate.
  • intransitive verb To obtain a divorce.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun A legal dissolution of the bond of marriage.
  • noun Hence—2. Complete separation; absolute disjunction; abrogation of any close relation: as, to make divorce between soul and body; the divorce of church and state.
  • noun The sentence or writing by which marriage is dissolved.
  • noun A divorced man.
  • To dissolve the marriage contract between by process of law; release legally from the marriage tie; release by legal process from sustaining the relation or performing the duties of husband or wife: absolutely or with from in this and the following senses. See divorce, n., 1.
  • Hence To release or sever from any close connection; force asunder.
  • To take away; put away.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • transitive verb To dissolve the marriage contract of, either wholly or partially; to separate by divorce.
  • transitive verb To separate or disunite; to sunder.
  • transitive verb To make away; to put away.
  • noun A legal dissolution of the marriage contract by a court or other body having competent authority. This is properly a divorce, and called, technically, divorce a vinculo matrimonii.
  • noun The separation of a married woman from the bed and board of her husband -- divorce a mensa et toro (or a mensa et thoro), “from bed and board”.
  • noun The decree or writing by which marriage is dissolved.
  • noun Separation; disunion of things closely united.
  • noun obsolete That which separates.
  • noun See under Bill.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun The legal dissolution of a marriage.
  • noun A separation of connected things.
  • verb transitive To legally dissolve a marriage between two people.
  • verb transitive To end one's own marriage in this way.
  • verb transitive To separate something that was connected.
  • verb intransitive To obtain a legal divorce.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun the legal dissolution of a marriage
  • verb part; cease or break association with
  • verb get a divorce; formally terminate a marriage

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English, from Old French, from Latin dīvortium, from dīvortere, to divert, variant of dīvertere; see divert.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Old French divorce, from Latin dīvortium, from dīvertere ("to turn aside"), from dī- ("apart") + vertere ("to turn"); see verse.

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