divaricate

Estimated CEFR level: C2 — Proficiency

Estimated from word frequency; not an official CEFR classification.

Definition

  1. verb branch off
  2. verb spread apart

Etymology

The verb is first attested in 1623, the adjective in 1788; borrowed from Latin dīvāricātus, perfect passive participle of dīvāricō (see -ate (verb-forming suffix) and -ate (adjective-forming suffix)), from dis- + vāricō (“to straddle, to stretch (the legs) apart”), from vāricus (“straddling”).

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