branch 1 of 2

1
as in limb
a major outgrowth from the main stem of a woody plant I loved climbing among the branches of that old tree

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2
as in affiliate
a local unit of an organization a bank with many neighborhood branches

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3
as in tributary
a stream that flows into a larger body of water the Blue Nile, the Atbara, and the White Nile are the three primary branches of the Nile River

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4
as in department
a large unit of a governmental, business, or educational organization the two branches of the U.S. Congress

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branch

2 of 2

verb

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 branch
Noun
Weeds, garden trimmings and small branches are among the soft yard materials allowed in the service. Bridget Fogarty, jsonline.com, 23 Oct. 2025 The brand recommends setting aside 30 to 45 minutes to fluff the flame-retardant branches for the most realistic result. Maggie Horton, PEOPLE, 22 Oct. 2025
Verb
And the Guinness family made a mark well outside the brewery, with subsequent generations branching into politics, banking, land development, and more. Randall Colburn, Entertainment Weekly, 25 Sep. 2025 By starting with communication control, the company can branch into deal analytics, proactive introductions, and relationship risk scoring, all extensions of the same contextual AI engine. Jason Phillips, USA Today, 24 Sep. 2025 See All Example Sentences for branch
Recent Examples of Synonyms for branch
Noun
  • Remove any broken or diseased limbs.
    Mary Marlowe Leverette, Southern Living, 22 Oct. 2025
  • In recent years he's suffered from post-polio syndrome -- difficulty swallowing and tightness and pain in his limbs.
    Arthur Allen, ABC News, 22 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • Several people were being treated at the scene after being knocked to the ground and trampled as those in the crowd ran for cover, CNN affiliate KYW reported, citing officials.
    Emma Tucker, CNN Money, 26 Oct. 2025
  • The family lost two dogs in the fire, according to FOX affiliate WFXT and CBS affiliate WBZ-TV.
    Abigail Adams, PEOPLE, 24 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • Of the more than five thousand tributaries that empty into the Great Lakes, about one in ten is infested with lampreys.
    Katie Thornton, New Yorker, 24 Oct. 2025
  • These ancient, natural waterways are former tributaries of the Rio Grande left behind hundreds to thousands of years ago when the river shifted its course.
    Gabi De la Rosa, Southern Living, 15 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • The police department previously booked him into the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department High Desert Detention Center on a murder charge, which was dropped during his arraignment on Tuesday, according to ABC7.
    Ingrid Vasquez, PEOPLE, 22 Oct. 2025
  • Spokespeople for Arizona’s Medicaid and Economic Security departments — Johnny Córdoba and Brett Bezio, respectively — did not share data on how many people participated in the state’s pilot test nor describe the outcome.
    Rae Ellen Bichell, CNN Money, 22 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • The green leaves radiating from the base of each dandelion.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 20 Oct. 2025
  • Meteor viewing times and tips The Orionids get their name because the meteors seem to radiate from a point near the bright star Betelgeuse in the constellation Orion.
    Dean Regas, Cincinnati Enquirer, 17 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • Scientists at Rice University have engineered living cells to light up like tiny beacons, revealing protein changes in real time.
    Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 24 Oct. 2025
  • In order to prepare for the procedure, the teen had to undergo chemotherapy to strip her immune system so her body would accept the new bone marrow cells.
    Zoey Lyttle, PEOPLE, 23 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • While sympathetic to conservative institutional media, federal law agencies did not often make moves based on posts from the nascent right wing creator class.
    Max Tani, semafor.com, 27 Oct. 2025
  • The Gogebic-Ontonagon Community Action Agency is not so fortunate, said Renee Pertile, early childhood director at the agency.
    Beki San Martin, Freep.com, 27 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • The board was too slow to recognize and adapt to changes in the US market, and failed to stem an overexpansion at the company, even as growth slowed, according to Sorensen.
    Dave Smith, Fortune, 21 Oct. 2025
  • Many of those drivers could have stemmed or erased their losses simply by waiting for another year or two and paying off some or all of the remaining loan balance, Drury said.
    Daniel de Visé, USA Today, 21 Oct. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Branch.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/branch. Accessed 28 Oct. 2025.

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