dissociate

Other forms: dissociated; dissociating; dissociates

To dissociate is to break apart or disconnect from someone or something. A business may dissociate itself from a former employee, or a person might dissociate from a political party after a change in policy.

Dissociate is the opposite of associate. It comes from the Latin dissociare, which means "to disunite." You may dissociate from a person you no longer want to be associated with, or from a cause or an organization. In chemistry, compounds dissociate when they break down into smaller constituent parts, such as molecules and atoms. In psychology, it describes a mental process where a person disconnects from their thoughts, feelings, or even from reality. In neuroscience, if related cognitive functions are operating independently of one another, they are said to be dissociated.

Definitions of dissociate

1. verb

   break away from; stop having a relationship with
   synonyms: disaffiliate, disassociate, disjoint, disunite, divorce

   type of:

   break, break up, part, separate, split, split up

   discontinue an association or relation; go different ways
2. verb

   regard as unconnected
   “you must dissociate these two events!”

   synonyms: decouple

   antonyms:

   associate

   make a logical or causal connection

   type of:

   differentiate, distinguish, secern, secernate, separate, severalise, severalize, tell, tell apart

   mark as different
3. verb

   (psychiatry) mentally separate from reality, a physical environment, or one's own self or feelings
4. verb

   to undergo a reversible or temporary breakdown of a molecule into simpler molecules or atoms
   “acids dissociate to give hydrogen ions”

   type of:

   break down, break up, decompose, degrade

   separate (substances) into constituent elements or parts