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apart

adverb · adjective

Simple meaning

Placed or kept separate and distinct as for a purpose.

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

uhpahrt

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US device voice
IPA pronunciation (US)

əˈpɑɹt

This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.

IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

adverb

  1. Placed or kept separate and distinct as for a purpose

    “Had a feeling of being set apart.”

  2. Placed separately (in regard to space or time).

  3. Separately, exclusively, not together.

  4. In or into two or more parts.

  5. Into parts or pieces

    “He took his father's watch apart.”

  6. To the side; aside.

adjective

  1. Separate, on the side.

  2. after a noun or in the predicate

    Exceptional, distinct.

  3. Having been taken apart; disassembled, in pieces.

Word at a Glance

Difficulty
B1 · Intermediate
Frequency
Common
Typical Use
Everyday English

Word Aura™

How this word commonly comes across.

Aura for this meaning

This meaning: Placed or kept separate and distinct as for a purpose

Used this way, apart is a common word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.

Heard in a sentence
“Had a feeling of being set apart.”
Emotional tone
Neutral
Formality
Neutral
Intensity
Not strongly marked
How common
Common
Connotation
No strong connotation
Usage feel
Neutral and straightforward

Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.

How It’s Used

The word’s distinct uses, one example each.

  • Placedadverb

    “Had a feeling of being set apart.”

  • Intoadverb

    “He took his father's watch apart.”

More ways to use apart

  • “He took his father's watch apart.”adverb
  • “These problems apart, the country is doing well.”adverb
  • “People can't tell the twins apart.”adverb

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Common Patterns and Combinations

How this word naturally appears with others.

far apartfarther apart

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Word Family

Related forms, grouped by how they connect.

Word family

Words built from the same root.

  • apartmentnounDerived noun · specialist

    A suite of rooms usually on one floor of an apartment house.

Compound terms

Established multiword terms.

  • come apartverbCompound term

    Become separated into pieces or fragments.

  • drift apartverbCompound term

    Lose personal contact over time.

  • fall apartverbCompound term

    Lose one's emotional or mental composure.

  • keep apartverbCompound term

    Set apart from others.

  • know apartverbCompound term

    Recognize or perceive the difference.

  • pick apartverbCompound term

    Find fault with.

More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin

Synonyms

adverb

Sense: placed

asunderArchaic

adjective

Sense: separate or on the side

separateisolatedseparated

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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.