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dissolve vs divide

Dissolve and divide both undo a whole, with a difference in how. Dissolve is for a solid to break down into a liquid, or for a body to be formally ended so it no longer stands. Divide is to split a whole into parts or shares, which remain. Dissolve breaks a whole down until nothing of it stands; divide splits it into lasting parts.

Quick rule
break a body down until nothing stands, or a solid into liquid→dissolve
split a whole into lasting parts or shares→divide
dissolve

Fig. 1a — dissolve.

/dɪˈzɑːlv//dɪˈzɒlv/·verb
vs
divide

Fig. 1b — divide.

/dɪˈvaɪd//dɪˈvaɪd/·verb, noun

Both undo a whole, but dissolve breaks it down and divide parcels it out. Dissolve, from dis- 'apart' and solvere 'to loosen', ends a body so it no longer stands, or lets a solid lose its shape into a liquid. Divide, from Latin dividere 'to force apart', splits one whole into parts or shares that each remain. A company is dissolved and ceases to exist; an estate is divided among heirs who each hold a share. One loosens a whole into nothing standing; the other makes lasting parts.

01What each means

dissolve

To dissolve is for a solid to break apart into a liquid until it disappears into it — sugar dissolves in water — or, by extension, for something to fade out or be formally ended (a marriage, a company, a parliament is dissolved). From the Latin dissolvere, 'to loosen apart', from solvere 'to loosen', the root of solve and solvent. A substance dissolves when its particles separate and spread evenly through the liquid — the reverse of what happens when droplets coalesce. Governments dissolve; tension dissolves; a crowd can dissolve into laughter.

divide

To divide is to split a whole into parts — often equal ones, and often methodically: divide a cake into six, divide the class into groups, divide twelve by three. From the Latin dividere, 'to force apart'. It is the tidy, measured cousin of split. As a noun, a divide is a gap or rift between groups — the digital divide, a widening social divide. The word reaches into maths (dividend, divisor) and into the old strategy of divide and conquer.

02At a glance
dissolvedivide
Meaningbreak down into liquid; formally endsplit a whole into parts or shares
Outcomethe whole gone; a body endedlasting parts that each remain
Of whatsolids, companies, parliamentsland, money, a group, opinion
Noundissolutiondivision
ExampleThe company was dissolved.They divided the estate.
03How to remember

Ask whether a whole breaks down or splits into lasting parts. Dissolve loosens a whole apart until nothing stands — a sugar cube clouding away, a company ended. Divide splits a whole into parts that each remain — a pie into even wedges. If a body breaks down or is ended, that is dissolve; if it splits into lasting parts, that is divide.

04In use

dissolve

  • iThe company was dissolved after years of losses.
  • iiThe prime minister asked the monarch to dissolve parliament.
  • iiiStir until the sugar dissolves completely.

divide

  • iThey divided the land equally among the four children.
  • iiThe teacher divided the class into six groups.
  • iiiThe estate was divided among the heirs.

Dissolve ends a whole — a body wound up, or a solid lost into liquid; divide splits a whole into parts that each remain. A company can be dissolved (gone) or its assets divided (shared out). The tell is what is left — nothing standing (dissolve) versus lasting parts (divide).

05TOEFL & IELTS

A useful pair for legal and financial writing. Dissolve is for ending a whole — 'dissolve the company', 'dissolve parliament' — or a solid in liquid; divide is for splitting into parts that remain — 'divide the assets', 'divide the estate'. Examiners reward the tell: nothing standing (dissolve) versus lasting shares (divide). The nouns are dissolution and division.

06Asked
What is the difference between dissolve and divide?
Dissolve is for a solid to break down into a liquid, or for a body to be formally ended so it no longer stands, while divide is to split a whole into parts or shares, which remain. Dissolve breaks a whole down until nothing stands; divide splits it into lasting parts. In the scenes above, a sugar cube loses its shape into water, whereas a pie is cut into six even wedges that all stay.
Are dissolve and divide the same?
They overlap in undoing a whole, but end differently. Dissolve loosens a whole apart until nothing stands — a body ended, or a solid into liquid; divide splits a whole into parts that each remain. A company is dissolved (gone), while its assets are divided (shared out). The tell is what is left: nothing standing (dissolve) versus lasting parts (divide).
What does it mean to dissolve a company, versus divide its assets?
To dissolve a company is to end it in law so it ceases to exist. To divide its assets is to split what it owned into shares that go to different people. So dissolution ends the body itself, while division parcels out what remains. One winds the whole up; the other distributes the parts that survive it.
Does divide always mean equal parts?
Not always, but it implies measured, deliberate splitting — the pie cut into six equal wedges in the scene above. Dissolve has no such order; a whole simply breaks down until nothing stands. So even an uneven division leaves lasting parts, whereas dissolution leaves nothing of the body itself.
What are the noun forms of dissolve and divide?
Dissolution and division. 'The dissolution of the company' names a body being ended; 'the division of the estate' names a splitting into shares. Note dissolve's other noun, solution, for the mixture left after a solid dissolves. The nouns keep the outcome apart: a body ended versus lasting parts.
Which word fits winding up a company?
Dissolve. A company is dissolved when it is formally wound up in law and ceases to exist, as the cube loses its shape in the scene above. Divide would mean splitting it or its assets into parts that remain. The tell is outcome: dissolve ends the whole, divide makes lasting parts.
Which word fits splitting an estate among heirs?
Divide. An estate is divided among heirs — parcelled into shares that each remain, as the pie is cut into wedges in the scene above. Dissolve would mean ending a body or breaking a solid down. The tell is outcome: divide makes lasting shares, dissolve breaks a whole down until nothing stands.
Related
disband vs dissolvedisband vs dividedisperse vs dissolvedisperse vs divide
dissolve — full entrydivide — full entry← All synonyms