Meanings
severance1
plural severances · alternative severaunce
- countableuncountableA separation.
- countableuncountableA severance payment.
Meta will notify employees who are being laid off on May 20, and will provide severance packages for those in the United States that include “16 weeks of base pay plus two weeks for every year of employment,” according to the memo to workers.
2026 April 23, Mike Isaac, Eli Tan, “Meta to Lay Off 10 Percent of Work Force in A.I. Push”, in The New York Times, →ISSN, archived from the original on 23 Apr 2026
Severance2
Synonyms & antonyms
nouna personal or social separation (as between opposing factions)
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Old Frenchsevrance
- Middle Englishseveraunce
- Englishseverance
From sever + -ance, from Middle English severaunce, from Anglo-Norman, Old French sevrance, from sevrer.
More words from Middle English, Old French
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Bulgarian отделяне, откъсване
- отделяне (otdeljane)act of severing
- откъсване (otkăsvane)act of severing
- разделяне (razdeljane)separation
Dutch scheiding, (het) lossnijden
- scheidingact of severing
- (het) lossnijdenact of severing
- (het) los zijnact of severing
- scheidingseparation
Finnish irrottaminen, katkaiseminen
- irrottaminenact of severing
- katkaiseminenact of severing
- eroseparation
German Scheidung, Trennung
- Scheidungact of severing
- Trennungact of severing
- Trennungseparation
Greek αποκοπή, αποκοπή
- αποκοπή (apokopí)act of severing
- αποκοπή (apokopí)separation
- διαχωρισμός (diachorismós)separation
Hungarian elvágás, levágás
- elvágásact of severing
- levágásact of severing
- szétvágásact of severing
- szétmetszésact of severing
- elválasztásseparation
- szétválasztásseparation
- különválasztásseparation
- elkülönítésseparation
- megszakításseparation
- elszakadásseparation
- különválásseparation
- kettéválásseparation
Italian separazione
- separazioneseparation
Japanese 切断, 分離
- 切断 (setsudan)act of severing
- 分離 (bunri)separation
Korean 절단, 분리
- 절단 (jeoldan)act of severing
- 분리 (bulli)separation
Polish oddzielenie, rozdzielenie
- oddzielenieact of severing
- rozdzielenieact of severing
- separacjaseparation
- odseparowanieseparation
Russian отделе́ние, отделе́ние
- отделе́ние (otdelénije)act of severing
- отделе́ние (otdelénije)separation
- разрыв (razrýv)separation
Spanish truncamiento, cercenadura
- truncamientoact of severing
- cercenaduraact of severing
- cercenamientoact of severing
Turkish ayrılma
- ayrılmaseparation
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with severance
All rhymes →Cite this entry
severance. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/severance
“severance.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/severance. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “severance,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/severance.
Source: severance on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.