What does apart mean?
Apart functions chiefly as an adverb describing separation — whether physical, temporal, emotional, or abstract. Two towns may lie ten miles apart, two events may occur years apart, and two friends may grow apart over time. It can also indicate breaking into pieces, as when a machine falls apart, or being held aside and treated differently, as in being set apart from one's peers. In fixed phrases like "apart from" (meaning except for) and idioms such as "worlds apart" (vastly different), the word extends into figurative territory. Its connotations range from neutral description of distance to poignant notes of estrangement or disintegration. Derived from Latin through Old French, it ultimately stems from the root meaning "part," making it etymologically kin to words like particle and partition — a fitting ancestry for a word whose whole business is division.
Separated by a specified distance or interval in space or time; into pieces; aside from others.
"The two towers stood several blocks apart."
Often modified by a measure of distance or time: "miles apart," "years apart."
Distinct and separate from other things or people.
"Their tastes in music were worlds apart."
Used almost exclusively in predicative position, not before a noun.
Despite looking like it contains "art," apart comes from the same Latin root that gives us particle and partial — literally "a small piece broken off."
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of apart
Apart entered English in the late Middle English period, borrowed from Old French "à part," meaning "at part" or "to one side." The French phrase combines the preposition à with part, derived from Latin "pars, partis," meaning a portion or share. This Latin root also underlies cognates such as particle, partial, and partition. Apart has carried its core sense of separation since its earliest recorded use in English.
Related word forms
How apart is actually used
Apart is primarily an adverb and is used attributively only in fixed phrases such as "apart from" (meaning except for or in addition to). As a predicative adjective, it appears mainly after verbs like stand, keep, set, or drift. It carries no strong register constraints and is equally at home in formal and informal writing.
Easily confused with apart
"Apart" is an adverb meaning separated, while "a part" is a noun phrase meaning a piece or component of something — "they grew apart" versus "she played a part in the play."