SEVERANCE Synonyms: 95 Similar and Opposite Words

severance

noun

Definition of severance

as in divorce

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of severance According to DePaul’s tax filings, Lenti Ponsetto received a severance payment of $793,262 in the fiscal year 2022. — Daniel Libit, Sportico.com, 17 Aug. 2026 But the high turnover built into their jobs means that their employers can invest less in their training and avoid the management costs otherwise associated with layoff severance and fair treatment on the job. — Paul Osterman, The Conversation, 11 Aug. 2026 The Partnership for Public Service estimates the cost of the 2025 workforce actions at roughly $71 billion when severance, paid administrative leave, rehiring, and lost productivity are tallied. — Arkansas Online, 9 Aug. 2026 During meetings in June and July, some of the 15-member board backed Crespi, pushing to give her nine months’ severance and taking issue with Rosado’s decision to publicly criticize her. — Tess Riski august 5, Miami Herald, 5 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for severance

Recent Examples of Synonyms for severance

Noun

York had filed for divorce from his wife in May due to irreconcilable differences, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.

— Grace Toohey, Los Angeles Times, 27 Aug. 2026
The photo was taken in 2023, before news of the couple's 2025 divorce.

— Paris Close, USA Today, 27 Aug. 2026

Definition of divorce

Noun

Then there are the affair-and-breakup songs, tunes where someone is searching for something better, like young musicians heading west to get famous.

— Grayson Haver Currin, Pitchfork, 30 Aug. 2026
But a drumbeat of doubt began in Elwood’s head in 2010 on a tour of Sarajevo, where Bosnian-Serb forces had committed atrocities during the war that followed the breakup of Yugoslavia.

— Rob Picheta, CNN Money, 30 Aug. 2026

Definition of breakup

Noun

Tymon Brown, the Gravel Institute’s head of production, said that the nonprofit’s dissolution was never explained to him or the rest of the organization.

— T.M. Brown, CNN Money, 29 Aug. 2026
In the following centuries, Norway didn't have a king of its own until Harald's grandfather, Haakon VII, was elected king following the 1905 dissolution of the union between Sweden and Norway.

— CBS News, CBS News, 28 Aug. 2026

Definition of dissolution

Noun

While snobbery and name-dropping dominate, Nora’s feeling of alienation is tempered by her crush on associate editor Thomas (Joshuah Melnick) who, though only slightly older, seems to know everything about piloting the scene.

— Andreas Wiseman, Deadline, 26 Aug. 2026
All three CEOs understood implicitly that prior alienation of primary points of customer contact are more destructive than any mere marketing campaign can fix.

— Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Fortune, 24 Aug. 2026

Definition of alienation

Noun

Scientists physically extract venom from a living animal, then use routine lab techniques to separate the sample into individual components, in a process known as fractionation.

— Steve Midway, STAT, 16 July 2026
Decarbonizing air travel The purification and fractionation steps are being developed jointly by scientists from TU Graz, the University of Zagreb in Croatia, and Portugal’s national energy laboratory (LNEG).

— Georgina Jedikovska, Interesting Engineering, 18 Dec. 2025

Definition of fractionation

Noun

Tehrani-Bagha said the decline results from some cellulose-chain cleavage during the treatments but should not prevent the material from undergoing further chemical recycling.

— Alexandra Harrell, Footwear News, 26 Aug. 2026
By 1974, Parton was out on her own, and her signature public image — the blond wigs, the cleavage-baring outfits that showed off her hourglass figure — was cast in stone.

— Corky Siemaszko, NBC news, 25 Aug. 2026

Definition of cleavage

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“Severance.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/severance. Accessed 2 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of severance

noun

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