Break down
Break down verb - To arrange or assign according to type.
Usage example: when presented with the pile of files, the first thing he did was to break them down by month, order within the month, and region
Separate is a synonym for break down in break topic. In some cases you can use "Separate" instead a verb "Break down", when it comes to topics like disappear, fall apart, analyze by taking apart.
Separate
Separate verb - To set or force apart.
Usage example: we tried to separate the gluey pages, but they were stuck tight
Related pairs
Both terms in one sentence
- Our Elves Are Better: Feist's elves are one race which break down into separate "types".
Source: Literature / The Riftwar Cycle -
A pickaxe can break down every wall, including the ones that separate one level from another.
Source: Dungeon Bypass -
In Attack on Titan, Reiner Braun and Bertolt Hoover break down in tears on separate occasions while admitting to the terrible things they've done.
Source: Tears of Remorse
Cite this Source
Separate and Break down. (2016). Retrieved 2026, July 21, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/break_down/separate
Break down & Separate. N.p., 2016. Web. 21 Jul. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/break_down/separate>.
Separate or Break down. 2016. Accessed July 21, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/break_down/separate.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "break down" and "separate" have occurred on timeline