dichotomy

noun di·chot·o·my \ dī-ˈkä-tə-mē also də- \

Updated on: 16 May 2018

Definition of dichotomy

plural dichotomies

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 : 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

3 : the phase of the moon or an inferior planet in which half its disk appears illuminated

4 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 branches

See dichotomy defined for English-language learners

See dichotomy defined for kids

Examples of dichotomy in a Sentence

The amusing spectacle of the recent presidential vote in Florida should remind us of the persistence of the federal-state dichotomy. —Eugene Genovese, Atlantic, March 2001
At the close of this millennium, the favored dichotomy features a supposed battle called "the science wars." —Stephen Jay Gould, Science, 14 Jan. 2000
… to insist on its being either symbol or fact is to dwell needlessly on a false dichotomy. —Simon Schama, The Embarrassment of Riches, 1988
… the Inuit concept of their environment was centred around the dichotomy between land and sea. —Ian Hodder, Reading the Past, 1986
Her essay discusses the dichotomy between good and evil in the author's novels.
her outfit is a sartorial dichotomy: an elegant gown and ratty old tennis shoes

Recent Examples of dichotomy from the Web

The dichotomy between outside expectations and internal optimism might be a wider gulf with the Dolphins than with any other team.

— greg cote, miamiherald, "Dolphins coach Adam Gase is betting big on three things to be successful in 2018 | Miami Herald," 10 May 2018
But seeing agency and victimhood as antithetical is a false dichotomy.

— jeet heer, The New Republic, "The Centrist Grievance Against “Victim Politics”," 7 May 2018
Yet when your ethnicity is Black and white, the dichotomy is not that clear.

— diana pearl, PEOPLE.com, "‘White Girls Only’ Club: How Meghan Fought Racism as a Young Girl in L.A.," 5 Apr. 2018
Yet Cook, the Duke economist, says this good guy/bad guy dichotomy is a false and dangerous one.

— melinda wenner moyer, Scientific American, "More Guns Do Not Stop More Crimes, Evidence Shows," 1 Oct. 2017
Indeed, that choice dichotomy sums up San Daniele’s overarching goal: to take customers on a journey from the predictable to the more regionally unexpected tastes from the vast Italian culinary canon — one small plate at a time.

— andrew marton, star-telegram, "Dining experience at San Daniele in Grapevine can be described in one word: bellisimo | Fort Worth Star-Telegram," 25 Apr. 2018
Chief Financial Officer Terry Dolan, in an interview, described a dichotomy in how the tax law is affecting businesses.

— christina rexrode, WSJ, "U.S. Bank Profit Fueled by Higher Interest Rates, Lower Taxes," 18 Apr. 2018
Day 2: Shopping, Artsy 'Hoods, and Frida Kahlo The historic center is a true dichotomy of big city grit and old-world elegance, but much of Mexico City’s beauty is subtler, within the nooks and crannies of its outlying neighborhoods.

— megan spurrell, Condé Nast Traveler, "3 Days in Mexico City," 16 Apr. 2018
The convergence zone between winter and summer seems to be set around Nebraska, and the dichotomy between the weather patterns is striking.

— angela fritz, Washington Post, "Snow, severe thunderstorms and temperature whiplash — all in one storm this week," 11 Apr. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'dichotomy.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

dichotomy and false dichotomy

The two most commonly used senses of dichotomy are easily (and often) confused. The older one refers to the division of something into two groups that often are mutually exclusive or contradictory (as in “the dichotomy between good and evil”). Like trichotomy (meaning “division into three parts”), this sense denotes separation into different elements, but it adds the connotation of oppositeness. The newer sense of dichotomy denotes a thing that appears to have contradictory qualities, such as a lemonade stand found in a war zone. Dichotomy is frequently found in the company of the word false; a false dichotomy is a kind of fallacy in which one is given only two choices when in fact other options are available.