A divider is something that separates things into different sections or groups. In your classroom, you might use plastic dividers in your binder to keep math papers separate from science papers. A room divider is a screen or partition that splits one large space into two smaller areas. Highway dividers are barriers between lanes of traffic going opposite directions, keeping cars safely apart.

The word can also mean a tool for measuring or marking equal distances. Math students sometimes use a compass divider, which looks like a metal V with two pointed legs, to transfer measurements or divide lines into equal segments. Architects and engineers use dividers when creating precise drawings.

In math, a divider is the number you're dividing by. When you calculate 20 ÷ 4, the 4 is the divisor (another word for divider), and you're finding out how many groups of 4 fit into 20.

Sometimes people talk about dividers in communities: issues or disagreements that separate people into opposing groups. Whether physical or social, dividers create boundaries that can be hard to cross.