Meaning & use
divvied
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“divvied” is a form of “divvy”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meaning
verbtransitiveinformal
Split something such as money, food or work into portions and handed those portions out among several people; the past form of 'divvy'.
Grammar: Takes an object and is usually followed by 'up': they divvied up the cash.
Patterns
- divvy something up
- divvy something up among someone
- divvy something up between people
The four housemates divvied up the grocery bill after every shopping trip.
Once the bake sale ended, the volunteers divvied the leftover cookies among themselves.
My grandparents divvied their garden into small plots so each grandchild could grow something.
Word forms
| third person singular | divvies |
|---|---|
| past tense | divvied |
| past participle | divvied |
| -ing form | divvying |
Common combinations
- divvied up the profits
- The founders divvied up the profits at the end of the year.
- divvied up the chores
- We divvied up the chores before the guests arrived.
- divvied up the work
- The team divvied up the work so that nobody was overloaded.
- divvied up the bill
- They divvied up the bill evenly, even though Sam had ordered less.
- divvied among themselves
- The children divvied the candy among themselves with surprisingly little arguing.
Synonyms and how they differ
- divided
- 'Divided' is the neutral, all-purpose word, whereas 'divvied' sounds chatty and is best kept for casual talk about sharing out something practical.
- split
- 'Split' often suggests two or a few equal parts, while 'divvied' fits sharing among a larger group with no promise of equal portions.
- apportioned
- 'Apportioned' is formal and implies a careful, rule-based allocation, which 'divvied' does not.
- shared out
- 'Shared out' is the British phrasal equivalent and sounds slightly less slangy than 'divvied up'.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: divvied or divvy (British slang)?
divvied vs divvy (British slang)
In British slang a 'divvy' can also be a silly or foolish person, which has nothing to do with sharing; 'divvied' as a verb only means shared out.
Practice
Yesterday the roommates ___ the bills between them according to who used each service.
Choose one answer.
The time word 'yesterday' needs the simple past, 'divvied up'. 'Divvy up' is the base form and 'divvies up' is present tense, so neither fits past time.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “divvied”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.