Definition of divergencenext
1
as in divergency
a movement in different directions away from a common point a growing divergence of opinion about that U.S. president's place in history

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2
as in deviation
a turning away from a course or standard any divergence from the community's strict moral code was met with social ostracism

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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 divergence Watch vessel-level AIS tracking data for the Gibraltar corridor itself, the kind of transit-time and vessel-count monitoring the IMF's PortWatch initiative already runs, for any early divergence from the roughly 300-vessels-per-day baseline. Frank Ahrens, Forbes.com, 31 July 2026 But the dramatic divergence of the new measurement from the detector’s own past results, along with the collaboration’s claim of high precision, made the situation hard to ignore. Matt Von Hippel, Quanta Magazine, 29 July 2026 If entry-level consultants, lawyers, and financial analysts were being systematically substituted out at the pace Amodei described to 60 Minutes in November 2025, McCrory’s occupation-level unemployment data should already show some divergence. Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 24 July 2026 The bullish divergence from 2021-2023 predating the trend change. Jay Woods, CNBC, 16 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for divergence
Recent Examples of Synonyms for divergence
Noun
  • With few exceptions, Southerners are pretty strict about the differences between cakes, pies, cobblers, and candies.
    Josh Miller, Southern Living, 1 Aug. 2026
  • At that scale, the difference between $1 and 20 cents per million input tokens becomes a serious procurement issue.
    Gerui Wang, Forbes.com, 1 Aug. 2026
Noun
  • This stretch of ribosomal RNA (rRNA) is identical across every other animal that’s been studied, so the deviation jumped out at Han.
    Cody Cottier, Scientific American, 29 July 2026
  • American manhood is a fragile and precarious thing, shattered by the slightest deviation from ever-shifting norms—eating the wrong taco, tasting tofu, not eating meat, or maybe eating too much meat.
    Adam Serwer, The Atlantic, 28 July 2026
Noun
  • It is particularly aimed at improving diversity in the sector through targeting young people from lower socio-economic backgrounds, female and non-binary individuals and those from ethnic minorities.
    Roger Trapp, Forbes.com, 31 July 2026
  • But African populations carry more diverse segments and some that are distinct, a consequence of some of the diversity that was lost when only a fraction of the total population expanded into Eurasia.
    ArsTechnica, ArsTechnica, 31 July 2026
Noun
  • Stribling has impressed during training camp and could have a significant role as a slot receiver following the departure of Jauan Jennings in free agency to the Minnesota Vikings.
    Chris Biderman, Sacbee.com, 31 July 2026
  • This is, of course, a significant departure from Tony Blair’s aim of creating a modern workforce that was largely university-educated.
    Roger Trapp, Forbes.com, 31 July 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Divergence.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/divergence. Accessed 2 Aug. 2026.

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