Definition of DISJUNCTION

Disjunction vs Disconnect

A disjunction may be a mere lack of connection between two things, or a large gulf. There's often a huge disjunction between what people expect from computers and what they know about them, and the disjunction between a star's public image and her actual character may be just as big. We may speak of the disjunction between science and morality, between doing and telling, or between knowing and explaining. In recent years, disjunction seem to have been losing out to a newer synonym, the noun disconnect.

Examples of disjunction in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The objects themselves are very ordinary—how significant is the disjunction in the story between the ordinary and the extraordinary? — Cressida Leyshon, The New Yorker, "J. Robert Lennon on Order, Chaos, and the Self," 19 Aug. 2019 The disjunction between the telling of such violence — written calmly, as if recounting a routine morning coffee — and the content of the acts themselves, reinforces the strange partition between past and present. — Sean Mccoy, Los Angeles Times, "Review: An authoritarian leader’s shadow looms over a weary country in ‘The Remainder’," 18 July 2019 Thus, with the opening of the Soviet Union toward the West, the disjunction between the deprivation of everyday life and its ideal representation became blatantly obvious. — Djurdja Bartlett, Smithsonian, "When the United States and Soviet Union Fought It Out Over Fashion," 4 June 2019 One of the most striking disjunctions is between the viciousness of the close-quarter fighting and the willingness of both sides to allow military and civilian medics to continue their work. — Daniel Todman, WSJ, "‘The Battle of Arnhem’ Review: The Dutch Dead End," 15 Oct. 2018 The video leaves you free to wonder about both the potential contradictions of activist pop and the queasy disjunction between moral concern and capitalist ambition. — Wesley Morris, New York Times, "‘Atlanta’ Skips a Grade," 11 May 2018 The disjunction opens up a vast and chilly space through which these characters wander as if lost in a dream. — Jeremy Eichler, BostonGlobe.com, "Behind the white picket fence, portraits of a jagged loneliness," 13 May 2018 This element of disjunction has become a cliché of postmodern architecture. — Kyle Chayka, The New Republic, "From architect to tastemaker, Bjarke Ingels is designing the future.," 2 May 2018 That kind of disjunction harks back to the medium's heyday a century ago, as a Dada vehicle of the politically infused absurd. — Leah Ollman, latimes.com, "Glitz, glamor, shine and sparkle: the dazzling photomontages of Fay Ray," 24 Apr. 2018

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