Definition

1. Noun:
   • The act of segregating or sequestering: The action or state of setting someone or something apart from others, often involving isolation or separation.
   • A social system that provides separate facilities for minority groups: A policy or practice of separating people based on racial, ethnic, or other social categories, especially when enforcing discrimination.
   • (Genetics) The separation of paired alleles during meiosis: The biological process where pairs of gene variants (alleles) separate so that each gamete (sperm or egg cell) receives only one allele from each pair.

Usage Examples

• Noun (General Separation):
  • The segregation of recyclable materials is essential for effective waste management.
  • During the trial, the judge ordered the segregation of the jury from outside influences.
• Noun (Social System):
  • The civil rights movement fought to end racial segregation in schools and public places.
  • Laws enforcing segregation created profound inequalities in society.
• Noun (Genetics):
  • Mendel's law of segregation explains how traits are inherited from parents.
  • During gamete formation, the segregation of alleles ensures genetic variation.

Advanced Usage

• "De facto segregation": Segregation that occurs in practice due to social, economic, or other factors, even without laws explicitly mandating it.
  • Despite legal changes, de facto segregation persisted in many urban neighborhoods due to housing patterns.
• "Segregation of duties": An internal control principle in business and accounting where tasks are divided among different people to reduce error and fraud.
  • A key audit finding was the lack of segregation of duties in the financial department.

Variants and Related Words

• Segregate (verb): To set apart from the rest or from each other.
  • The school should not segregate students based on their learning abilities.
• Segregated (adjective): Characterized by or practicing segregation.
  • They attended a segregated school in the 1950s.
• Segregationist (noun): A person who supports the policy of segregation, especially racial segregation.
  • The politician was a known segregationist.

Synonyms

• Separation: The action of moving or being moved apart.
• Isolation: The process of being isolated.
• Apartheid: (Specifically for racial segregation) A policy or system of segregation or discrimination on grounds of race.

Antonyms

• Integration: The process of combining or coordinating separate elements, especially the mixing of racial or ethnic groups.
• Inclusion: The action or state of including or being included within a group or structure.
• Assimilation: The process of taking in and fully understanding information or ideas; also, the absorption of people into a dominant culture.

Related Phrases

• "Residential segregation": The physical separation of different social groups into different neighborhoods.
  • Residential segregation often leads to unequal access to resources like quality schools.
• "Gender segregation": The separation of people based on their gender.
  • Some cultures practice gender segregation in social and religious settings.

Noun

1. the act of segregating or sequestering
   • sequestration of the jury
2. a social system that provides separate facilities for minority groups
3. (genetics) the separation of paired alleles during meiosis so that members of each pair of alleles appear in different gametes