Collins English-English Dictionary

division [dɪ'vɪʒən]

1. 1. n the act of dividing or state of being divided

2. 2. n the act of sharing out; distribution

3. 3. n something that divides or keeps apart, such as a boundary

4. 4. n one of the parts, groups, etc, into which something is divided

5. 5. n a part of a government, business, country, etc, that has been made into a unit for administrative, political, or other reasons

6. 6. n a formal vote in Parliament or a similar legislative body

7. 7. n a difference of opinion, esp one that causes separation

8. 8. n (in sports) a section, category, or class organized according to age, weight, skill, etc

9. 9. n a mathematical operation, the inverse of multiplication, in which the quotient of two numbers or quantities is calculated. Usually written: a ÷ b, , a/b

10. 10. n [army] a major formation, larger than a regiment or brigade but smaller than a corps, containing the necessary arms to sustain independent combat

11. 11. n [navy] a group of ships of similar type or a tactical unit of naval aircraft

12. 12. n [air force] an organization normally comprising two or more wings with required support units

13. 13. n [plural] [navy] the assembly of all crew members for the captain's inspection

14. 14. n [biology] (in traditional classification systems) a major category of the plant kingdom that contains one or more related classes - Compare phylum

15. 15. n [horticulture] any type of propagation in plants in which a new plant grows from a separated part of the original

16. 16. n [logic] the fallacy of inferring that the properties of the whole are also true of the parts, as Britain is in debt, so John Smith is in debt

17. 17. n (esp in 17th-century English music) the art of breaking up a melody into quick phrases, esp over a ground bass

18. 18. n [Etymology] C14: from Latin divisio, from dividere to divide