Main Entry:

di·chot·o·my

Pronunciation:

\dī-ˈkä-tə-mē also də-\

Function:

noun

Inflected Form(s):

plural di·chot·o·mies

Etymology:

Greek dichotomia, from dichotomos

Date:

1610

1: a division into two especially mutually exclusive or contradictory groups or entities <the dichotomy between theory and practice> ; also : the process or practice of making such a division <dichotomy of the population into two opposed classes>2: the phase of the moon or an inferior planet in which half its disk appears illuminated3 a: bifurcation ; especially : repeated bifurcation (as of a plant's stem) b: a system of branching in which the main axis forks repeatedly into two branches c: branching of an ancestral line into two equal diverging branches4: something with seemingly contradictory qualities <it's a dichotomy, this opulent Ritz-style luxury in a place that fronts on a boat harbor — Jean T. Barrett>