as in classifying
to arrange or assign according to type
we shouldn't compartmentalize the students into such restrictive categories as scholar and athlete, which are not mutually exclusive
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Recent Examples of compartmentalizing
Also, this team had been good all season at compartmentalizing and being unmoved by things outside their control.
—
Dianna Russini, New York Times, 31 Jan. 2026
But Knife is careful to avoid giving the assailant too much space in the narrative, as if compartmentalizing his role was somehow a necessary part of the writer’s rehabilitation.
—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 25 Jan. 2026
But a different kind of compartmentalizing going on, yeah.
—Kate Aurthur, Variety, 7 Nov. 2025
Instead of compartmentalizing passion and profession, some workers are finding that one can meaningfully enhance the other.
—Michael Hansen, Forbes.com, 28 Aug. 2025
Dianna Russini, New York Times, 31 Jan. 2026
But Knife is careful to avoid giving the assailant too much space in the narrative, as if compartmentalizing his role was somehow a necessary part of the writer’s rehabilitation.
—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 25 Jan. 2026
But a different kind of compartmentalizing going on, yeah.
—Kate Aurthur, Variety, 7 Nov. 2025
Instead of compartmentalizing passion and profession, some workers are finding that one can meaningfully enhance the other.
—Michael Hansen, Forbes.com, 28 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for compartmentalizing
Verb
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This means OpenAI is essentially classifying the model as capable enough at coding to potentially facilitate significant cyber harm, especially if automated or used at scale.—
Beatrice Nolan,
Fortune,
10 Feb. 2026
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Young Women’s Leadership Academy has students in grades 6-12 and has an 85% minority population, with 65% of total students classifying as Hispanic and 20% as African-American.—
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
30 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Whether you’re headed out for dinner, planning a picnic or just grabbing a last-minute card, here’s what to know about the holiday — Austin keeps ranking as one of the best places to celebrate.—
Katey Psencik,
Austin American Statesman,
14 Feb. 2026
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Many higher-ranking staff started in the program and now help others.—
Miranda Dunlap,
jsonline.com,
13 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Protective planning as a long-term discipline Perhaps the most distinguishing feature of future-proof asset protection is timing.—
Malana VanTyler,
USA Today,
10 Feb. 2026
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Season 2 explores where this chaos comes from, and the difficulty in distinguishing the sheriff from the outlaw.—
Shirley Li,
The Atlantic,
5 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Turquoise Health assembles price data by grouping codes for services together using machine learning, a type of artificial intelligence.—
Darius Tahir,
NPR,
10 Feb. 2026
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This food trend feeds this growing interest, by grouping three or more condiments together in one slick order.—
Karla Walsh,
Southern Living,
10 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Embracing those expectations rather than fighting them, Kok extended her two-year-plus unbeaten streak at her sport’s shortest distance Sunday, adding a gold medal and the Olympic record to her world mark, beating Jackson head-to-head in the final heat and relegating Leerdam to the silver.—
Howard Fendrich,
Chicago Tribune,
15 Feb. 2026
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White settlers and corporations quickly swooped in to tap into the vast natural riches of these new territories, relegating the original inhabitants to being strangers in their own land.—
Gustavo Arellano,
Los Angeles Times,
6 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Investigators are also not categorizing the case as any particular type of crime at this stage, according to a federal law enforcement source with knowledge of the investigation.—
Liz Kreutz,
NBC news,
16 Feb. 2026
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Budgeting apps like Empower and Monarch connect to your bank account and credit cards, automatically tracking and categorizing your transactions.—
Jasmin Suknanan,
CNBC,
10 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Friday’s event was not the first time the President has delivered such overtly political remarks at military venues, testing the tradition of separating the armed forces from partisan politics.—
Nandika Chatterjee,
Time,
15 Feb. 2026
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The field is tightly bunched, with just over a second separating the top 10.—
Sean Nevin,
NBC news,
15 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Five minutes of sorting your meds into an efficient pill organizer saves space for far more important things (like an extra pair of shoes).—
Carin Ryan,
Travel + Leisure,
11 Feb. 2026
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Recently, Tasic, a neuroscientist and genomicist at the Allen Institute for Brain Science, and her collaborators recruited artificial intelligence for the sorting and mapmaking effort.—
Amber Dance,
Quanta Magazine,
9 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Compartmentalizing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/compartmentalizing. Accessed 18 Feb. 2026.
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