to be separated; to be scattered; discontinuous
Meanings
2 senses · 10 examplesverb
to be separated; to be scattered; (of family members) to be unable to reunite
formalOften used to describe families, friends, or groups being separated by war, disaster, or other circumstances.
War led to the separation of many families.
The two brothers were separated for thirty years during the turmoil.
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The separated family members finally reunited.
The refugees settled temporarily in this camp, but many are still separated from their families.
The government is making efforts to help separated families find their lost members.
verb
to be scattered; to be discontinuous; (of signals, data) to be discrete
technicalUsed in mathematics, signal processing, and technical contexts to describe things that are not continuous. Also used more generally for scattered things.
This device is used to process discrete digital signals.
Discrete mathematics is the foundation of computer science.
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The survey results show that customer feedback is very scattered, with no clear trend.
The data points are too scattered to fit a smooth curve.
Discrete manufacturing and process manufacturing are two main production methods.