Dictionary

distribute en · VERB

Pronunciation

• /dəˈstɹəbjʉːt/ (New-Zealand)
• (California) audio
• /dɪˈstɹɪbjut/ (Canada, General-American)
• /ˈdɪstɹɪbjuːt/ (Received-Pronunciation)
• /dɪˈstɹɪbjʉːt/ (Australia)
• dĭ-strĭbʹyo͞ot (Canada, General-American)
• /dɪˈstɹɪbjuːt/ (Received-Pronunciation)

Etymology

PIE word *tréyes From Latin distributus, past participle of distribuere (“to divide, distribute”), from dis- (“apart”) + tribuere (“to give, impart”); see tribute.

Meanings

1. (transitive) To divide into portions and dispense.
   • He distributed the bread amongst his followers.
2. (transitive) To supply to retail outlets.
   • The agency distributes newspapers to local shops.
3. (transitive) To deliver or pass out.
   • Above all, the 48-page timetables of the new service, which have been distributed free at every station in the scheme, are a model to the rest of B.R. For the first time on British Railways, so far as we are aware, a substantial timetable has been produced, not only without a single footnote but also devoid of all wearisome asterisks, stars, letter suffixes and other hieroglyphics. 1960 December 14, “The Glasgow Suburban Electrification is opened”, in Trains Illustrated, page 714:
   • Datacasting bypasses the wired, terrestrial Internet and is a cheaper way to distribute software than pressing and mailing CDs. 2000, George Abe, Residential Broadband, Cisco Systems, →ISBN:
   • A network of children distributes flyers to every house.
4. (transitive) To scatter or spread.
   • The air-handling equipment humidifies, dehumidifies, and distributes the correct amount of fresh air into every zone and eliminates all smoke, dust, and odors, with electric precipitrons. 1949, Proceedings of the ... Consolidated Convention of the International Brotherhood of Boiler Makers, Iron Ship Builders, and Helpers of America, page 159:
   • I raked the soil then distributed grass seed.
5. (transitive) To apportion (more or less evenly).
   • With an election not much more than a year away, distributing HS2's money into roads is pork barrel politics. Or at least it would be if the money existed. 2023 November 29, Philip Haigh, “Comment: Can we save HS2 to Crewe?”, in RAIL, number 997, page 3:
   • The robot's six legs distributed its weight over a wide area.
6. (transitive) To classify or separate into categories.
   • The database distributed verbs into transitive and intransitive segments.
7. (intransitive) To be distributive.
   • Multiplication distributes over addition.
8. To separate (type which has been used) and return it to the proper boxes in the cases.
9. To spread (ink) evenly, as upon a roller or a table.
10. To employ (a term) in its whole extent; to take as universal in one premise.
    • A term is said to be distributed when it is taken universal, so as to stand for everything it is capable of being applied to. 1826, Richard Whately, Elements of Logic:
11. To have employees working remotely from multiple locations.
    • distributed business; distributed employee

Forms

Antonyms

reassemble · concentrate · consolidate · gather · amass

Deriveds

distributable · misdistribute · distributionism · interdistribute · self-distribute · equidistribute · overdistribute · codistribute · distributary · underdistribute · distributism · redistribute · distributivity · distributor · distributivism · distribution · distributer · distributee

Hypernyms

spread · separate · give · disseminate

Hyponyms

ration

Synonyms

dole out · dispend · sunder out · sparble · categorize (to classify or separate into categories) · mete out · share · portion out · courier (to deliver or pass out) · piecemeal · apportion · issue · strew · distribute · divide · allocate · allot (to divide into portions and dispense) · disperse (to scatter or spread) · parcel out · dispart · deal out · dispense · sort · deal · administer · share out · give out

Translations (150)

nl leveren (to supply to retail outlets) · fi jakaa (to deliver or pass out) · is flokka (to classify or separate into categories) · fi jakaa (to divide into portions and dispense) · sw kugawanya (to divide into portions and dispense) · ro clasifica (to classify or separate into categories) · ru дели́ть (to apportion) · hy բաշխել (to divide into portions and dispense) · ru разда́ть (to deliver or pass out) · ca distribuir (to divide into portions and dispense) · ar وَزَّعَ (to supply to retail outlets) · is útbýta (to deliver or pass out) · he חילק (to apportion) · is deila út (to divide into portions and dispense) · ru разбры́згать (to scatter or spread) · ga scaoil (to divide into portions and dispense) · nl verspreiden (to scatter or spread) · sv dela ut (to deliver or pass out) · fi luokitella (to classify or separate into categories) · ro distribui (to divide into portions and dispense) · ro repartiza (to divide into portions and dispense) · fr répartir (to classify or separate into categories) · ja 蒔く (to scatter or spread) · tl ibahagi (to supply to retail outlets) · it suddividere (to scatter or spread) · pt distribuir (to divide into portions and dispense) · sv distribuera (to supply to retail outlets) · ca repartir (to divide into portions and dispense) · is útdeila (to divide into portions and dispense) · eu banatu (to deliver or pass out) · ro repartiza (to apportion) · tl ikalat (to divide into portions and dispense) · fi jakaa (to classify or separate into categories) · bg раздавам (to deliver or pass out) · ro distribui (to apportion) · tr dağıtmak (to divide into portions and dispense) · qu rakiy (to divide into portions and dispense) · hu szétoszt (to divide into portions and dispense) · fi jakaa (to apportion) · pt parcelar (to divide into portions and dispense) · ro repartiza (to classify or separate into categories) · nl verdelen (to apportion) · ru распространя́ть (to supply to retail outlets) · sa भजति (to divide into portions and dispense) · ru разделить (to classify or separate into categories) · tr dağıtmak (to deliver or pass out) · got 𐌳𐌰𐌹𐌻𐌾𐌰𐌽 (to divide into portions and dispense) · ru разброса́ть (to scatter or spread) · ln kabola (to divide into portions and dispense) · pt distribuir (to scatter or spread) · de verteilen (to deliver or pass out) · is dreifa (to supply to retail outlets) · hy բաշխել (to apportion) · bg разпределям (to divide into portions and dispense) · ja 分ける (to divide into portions and dispense) · grc διανέμω (to divide into portions and dispense) · ru распредели́ть (to divide into portions and dispense) · sv fördela (to divide into portions and dispense) · no fordele (to divide into portions and dispense) · sv fördela (to scatter or spread) · as বিলা (to divide into portions and dispense) · pt parcelar (to apportion) · nl opdelen (to classify or separate into categories) · gl espallar (to scatter or spread) · de aufteilen (to classify or separate into categories) · fi jakautua (to be distributive) · cs distribuovat (to deliver or pass out) · ru разбра́сывать (to scatter or spread) · ro distribui (to supply to retail outlets) · it distribuire (to divide into portions and dispense) · es repartir (to scatter or spread) · he חילק (to divide into portions and dispense) · nl indelen (to classify or separate into categories) · de beliefern (to supply to retail outlets) · cmn 分配 (to deliver or pass out) · ja 配送する (to supply to retail outlets) · es distribuir (to divide into portions and dispense) · is dreifa (to scatter or spread) · ru распространи́ть (to supply to retail outlets) · sv fördela (to apportion) · de verteilen (to divide into portions and dispense) · is úthluta (to divide into portions and dispense) · pt espalhar (to scatter or spread) · oc distribuir (to divide into portions and dispense) · it ripartire (to scatter or spread) · eu banatu (to divide into portions and dispense) · es distribuir (to scatter or spread) · eo disdoni (to deliver or pass out) · bni kabola (to divide into portions and dispense) · pt repartir (to scatter or spread) · ru распределя́ть (to divide into portions and dispense) · tr paylaştırmak (to divide into portions and dispense) · fr distribuer (to deliver or pass out) · fr répartir (to apportion) · he הפיץ (to supply to retail outlets) · de verteilen (to apportion) · de verteilen (to supply to retail outlets) · ru разделя́ть (to apportion) · tl ipamahagi (to supply to retail outlets) · he חילק (to deliver or pass out) · de ausliefern (to deliver or pass out) · gl despender (to scatter or spread) · ro împărți (to divide into portions and dispense) · it distribuire (to scatter or spread) · hy բաժանել (to deliver or pass out) · ca distribuir (to scatter or spread) · ja 配達する (to supply to retail outlets) · mi tītaritari (to scatter or spread) · ro repartiza (to deliver or pass out) · ro împărți (to classify or separate into categories) · nl verdelen (to divide into portions and dispense) · fr distribuer (to supply to retail outlets) · ru раздели́ть (to apportion) · ru раздава́ть (to deliver or pass out) · is dreifa (to deliver or pass out) · de verteilen (to scatter or spread) · ar وَزَّعَ (to divide into portions and dispense) · fi levittää (to scatter or spread) · gl distribuír (to scatter or spread) · pt classificar (to classify or separate into categories) · is dreifa (to apportion) · de aufteilen (to divide into portions and dispense) · pt distribuir (to supply to retail outlets) · eo distribui (to divide into portions and dispense) · ro livra (to deliver or pass out) · fr distribuer (to divide into portions and dispense) · pl rozdzielać (to divide into portions and dispense) · got 𐌲𐌰𐌼𐌹𐍄𐌰𐌽 (to divide into portions and dispense) · ro distribui (to deliver or pass out) · tl kalatan (to divide into portions and dispense) · ja 分類する (to classify or separate into categories) · as ভগা (to divide into portions and dispense) · ca repartir (to scatter or spread) · pt distribuir (to deliver or pass out) · ar وَزَّعَ (to deliver or pass out) · as বাট (to divide into portions and dispense) · sv utdela (to deliver or pass out) · ja 分ける (to classify or separate into categories) · bg разпръсквам (to scatter or spread) · fi jaella (to supply to retail outlets) · is skipta (to classify or separate into categories) · fi lajitella (to classify or separate into categories) · de ausliefern (to supply to retail outlets) · he חילק (to classify or separate into categories) · chr ᎠᏯᏙᎯᎭ (to divide into portions and dispense) · la distribuō (to divide into portions and dispense) · fr répartir (to scatter or spread) · gl repartir (to scatter or spread) · ru разбры́згивать (to scatter or spread) · sv uppdela (to classify or separate into categories)