divaricate

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/daɪˈvæɹɪkeɪt/

verb

To spread apart; to (cause to) diverge or branch off.

OriginLatin dīvāricātus →
Scrabble 16
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Meanings

verbdivaricate (third-person singular simple present divaricates, present participle divaricating, simple past and past participle divaricated)

present singular third person divaricates · participle present divaricating · participle past divaricated · past divaricated

  1. ambitransitiveTo spread apart; to (cause to) diverge or branch off.
adjectivedivaricate (comparative more divaricate, superlative most divaricate)

comparative more divaricate · superlative most divaricate

  1. biologyHaving wide angles between the branches.

Origin

  1. Latindīvāricātus
  2. Englishdivaricate

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”).

More words from Latin

Full word history & related roots →

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

vicariatedradicative
Cite this entry
APA

divaricate. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/divaricate

MLA

“divaricate.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/divaricate. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “divaricate,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/divaricate.

Source: divaricate on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.