Synonyms of sunder

sunder

verb

ˈsən-dər 

as in to divide

to set or force apart

during the cold war East and West Berlin were sundered by an impenetrable wall

Synonyms & Similar Words

• divide
• separate
• split
• disconnect
• sever
• resolve
• dissever
• disunite
• dissociate
• disjoin
• divorce
• uncouple
• pull
• disassociate
• ramify
• unlink
• disjoint
• detach
• decouple
• isolate
• cleave
• unyoke
• break up
• part
• decompose
• dissect
• dissolve
• subdivide
• disintegrate
• fragment
• rend
• rip
• tear
• bifurcate
• bisect
• halve
• partition
• segment
• quarter
• disassemble
• break down
• segregate
• dichotomize
• break
• fractionate
• rupture
• rift
• fracture
• unravel
• cut off
• disengage
• untie
• rive
• fractionalize
• fragmentate
• insulate
• trisect
• seclude
• sequester
• disentangle
• fragmentize

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• unite
• join
• unify
• link
• combine
• mix
• assemble
• associate
• mingle
• couple
• blend
• connect
• bind
• attach
• close
• stick
• fasten
• fuse
• accumulate
• knit
• weld
• cement
• agglutinate

Synonym Chooser

How is the word sunder distinct from other similar verbs?

Some common synonyms of sunder are divide, divorce, part, separate, and sever. While all these words mean "to become or cause to become disunited or disjointed," sunder suggests violent rending or wrenching apart.

a city sundered by racial conflict

When is it sensible to use divide instead of sunder?

The words divide and sunder can be used in similar contexts, but divide implies separating into pieces or sections by cutting or breaking.

civil war divided the nation

When would divorce be a good substitute for sunder?

The words divorce and sunder are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, divorce implies separating two things that commonly interact and belong together.

cannot divorce scientific research from moral responsibility

When can part be used instead of sunder?

The synonyms part and sunder are sometimes interchangeable, but part implies the separating of things or persons in close union or association.

vowed never to part

When is separate a more appropriate choice than sunder?

Although the words separate and sunder have much in common, separate may imply any of several causes such as dispersion, removal of one from others, or presence of an intervening thing.

separated her personal life from her career

Where would sever be a reasonable alternative to sunder?

The meanings of sever and sunder largely overlap; however, sever implies violence especially in the removal of a part or member.

a severed limb

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of sunder

Joining this transcontinental system, the Interregional Highway, a broad freeway that cut through the center of Austin starting in the 1940s, had already sundered neighborhoods from neighborhoods, and communities from communities. — Michael Barnes, Austin American Statesman, 30 Nov. 2025

The company has already sundered its businesses internally into two divisions ahead of a formal separation. — Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 6 Nov. 2025

Others, like me, wake up in the middle of the night, their sleep sundered into two chunks. — Rowan Jacobsen, Harpers Magazine, 24 Oct. 2025

Comcast and Versant won’t be completely sundered after the split, as the USGA deal demonstrates. — David Bloom, Forbes.com, 14 Aug. 2025