segregation

noun seg·re·ga·tion \ ˌse-gri-ˈgā-shən \

|Updated on: 9 Aug 2018

Examples: segregation in a Sentence

Definition of segregation

1 : the act or process of segregating : the state of being segregated

2 a : the separation or isolation of a race, class, or ethnic group by enforced or voluntary residence in a restricted area, by barriers to social intercourse, by separate educational facilities, or by other discriminatory means

b : the separation for special treatment or observation of individuals or items from a larger group

segregation of gifted children into accelerated classes

3 : the separation of allelic genes that occurs typically during meiosis

See segregation defined for English-language learners

See segregation defined for kids

Examples of segregation in a Sentence

They fought to end the segregation of public schools.
the segregation of men and women

Recent Examples of segregation from the Web

Hugo Black, a former Klansman from Alabama, ruled school segregation unconstitutional.

— The Economist, "A court with a solid conservative majority could reshape American life," 5 July 2018
Civil rights activists used the song frequently; it was sung by African-American children at school segregation protests in Mississippi and Louisiana, and by participants in Martin Luther King Jr.’s march on Detroit in 1963.

— New York Times, "‘God Bless America’: 100 Years of an Immigrant’s Anthem," 2 July 2018
Cara Fitzpatrick, a former Tampa Bay Times reporter, covered education for the Florida paper and coauthored a Pulitzer Prize-winning series about school segregation.

— anna orso, Philly.com, "Following Annapolis shooting, journalists contemplate angry readers, death threats and backlash," 29 June 2018
Roberto Alvarez, 12, wins a landmark school segregation suit filed against the Lemon Grove School District, which had banished Mexican-American students to separate classrooms.

— merrie monteagudo, sandiegouniontribune.com, "History in headlines," 15 Apr. 2018
He was recruited by the NAACP, which had organized four other class-action lawsuits challenging high school segregation in South Carolina, Virginia, Delaware and the District of Columbia.

— washington post, latimes.com, "Linda Brown, who as a girl was at center of Brown vs. Board of Education decision, dies at 76," 27 Mar. 2018
In a unanimous ruling in 1954, the court declared school segregation an unconstitutional violation of the 14th Amendment's guarantee of equal protection under the law.

— CBS News, "Linda Brown, student at the center of landmark Brown v. Board of Education, dead at 75," 27 Mar. 2018
Linda Brown, the 12-year-old girl who was the subject of the unanimous 1954 Supreme Court decision that outlawed formal school segregation, died today at the age of 76.

— ed kilgore, Daily Intelligencer, "Linda Brown, Center of Watershed Desegregation Case, Dies at 76," 26 Mar. 2018
Oliver Brown took that denial and joined other plaintiffs involved in an NAACP legal challenge of school segregation in Kansas.

— monique judge, The Root, "Linda Brown, Whose Landmark Lawsuit Led to School Desegregation, Dead at 76," 26 Mar. 2018

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

First Known Use of segregation

1555

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

NEW! Time Traveler

segregation Synonyms

Other Sociology Terms

bourgeois, ethos, eugenics, exurb, incommunicado, intelligentsia, megalopolis, metrosexual, mores, subculture

SEGREGATION Defined for English Language Learners

segregation

noun

Definition of segregation for English Language Learners

: the practice or policy of keeping people of different races, religions, etc., separate from each other

SEGREGATION Defined for Kids

segregation

noun seg·re·ga·tion \ ˌse-gri-ˈgā-shən \

Definition of segregation for Students

: the practice or policy of separating a race, class, or group from the rest of society

Medical Dictionary

segregation

noun seg·re·ga·tion \ ˌseg-ri-ˈgā-shən \

medical Definition of segregation

: the separation of allelic genes that occurs typically during meiosis

Law Dictionary

segregation

noun seg·re·ga·tion \ ˌse-gri-ˈgā-shən \

legal Definition of segregation

1 : separation of individuals or groups and especially racial groups — compare desegregation

— de facto segregation

: segregation of racial groups that arises as a result of economic, social, or other factors rather than by operation or enforcement of laws or other official state action

— de jure segregation

: segregation intended or mandated by law or otherwise intentionally arising from state action

Note: De jure segregation is illegal.

2 : separate confinement of prisoners within a penal institution