divergent

English

Etymology

From Latin dis- (“apart”) + vergere (“to turn”) + the adjectival suffix -ent.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /daɪˈvɜː.d͡ʒənt/, /dɪˈvɜː.d͡ʒənt/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /dɪˈvɝ.d͡ʒənt/, /daɪˈvɝ.d͡ʒənt/

  • Audio (US):

    (file)

• (General Australian) IPA^(key): /dɑɪˈvɜː.d͡ʒənt/
• Rhymes: -ɜː(ɹ)dʒənt

Adjective

divergent (comparative more divergent, superlative most divergent)

1. Growing further apart; diverging.
   • 1995, Paul Kussmaul, Training The Translator, John Benjamins Publishing Co, page 47:

     Divergent thinking and transformations are, of course, no novel phenomena. They have always occurred in the translation process, but perhaps we have not been fully aware of them, or have not been able to categorise them with sufficient precision until now.

   • 2020, “Zoo”, in Still at the Rough Cusp of Renaissance, performed by Good Fuck:

     Four zebras stood despondent facing divergent directions like an old European film or a '90s band photo.

2. (mathematics) (said of a sequence or series) Diverging; not approaching a limit.
3. Disagreeing from something given; differing.

   a divergent statement

4. Causing divergence of rays.

   a divergent lens

Derived terms

• codivergent
• divergent gill trama
• divergently
• divergent series
• divergent thinking
• enantiodivergent
• hyperdivergent
• hypodivergent
• multidivergent
• neurodivergent
• nondivergent
• normodivergent
• regiodivergent
• stereodivergent
• undivergent

Related terms

• diverge
• converge

Translations

growing further apart; diverging

Bulgarian: отклоняващ се (otklonjavašt se) Czech: divergentní (cs), rozbíhavý Finnish: hajaantuva (fi), hajautuva, laajeneva (fi), eriytyvä; divergentti Hungarian: széthúzó (hu) Maori: tīhoi Polish: rozbieżny (pl) Romanian: divergent (ro) Spanish: divergente (es)

of a series, not converging

Asturian: diverxente Bulgarian: разходящ (razhodjašt) Catalan: divergent Finnish: hajaantuva (fi) French: divergent (fr) Galician: diverxente Georgian: განშლადი (ganšladi) Greek: (please verify) αποκλίνουσα f (apoklínousa) Hungarian: divergens (hu) Italian: divergente (it) Maori: tīhoi Polish: rozbieżny (pl) Portuguese: divergente (pt) Romanian: divergent (ro) Russian: расходящийся (ru) (rasxodjaščijsja) Spanish: divergente (es) Swedish: divergent (sv) Tagalog: palayo

Anagrams

• ridge vent

Catalan

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin dīvergentem.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central) [di.βərˈʒen]
• IPA^(key): (Balearic) [di.vərˈʒent]
• IPA^(key): (Valencia) [di.veɾˈd͡ʒent]

Adjective

divergent m or f (masculine and feminine plural divergents)

1. divergent

Related terms

• divergir

Further reading

• “divergent”, in Diccionari de la llengua catalana [Dictionary of the Catalan Language] (in Catalan), second edition, Institute of Catalan Studies [Catalan: Institut d'Estudis Catalans], April 2007
• “divergent”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2025
• “divergent” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• “divergent” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

Dutch

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin dīvergēns, the active present participle of the Latin verb that also underlies the borrowed Dutch divergeren.

Pronunciation

• Audio:

  (file)

Adjective

divergent (comparative divergenter, superlative divergentst)

1. divergent

   Antonym: convergent

   divergente reeks ― divergent series

Declension

Declension of divergent
uninflected	divergent
inflected	divergente
comparative	divergenter
		positive	comparative	superlative
predicative/adverbial		divergent	divergenter	het divergentst het divergentste
indefinite	m./f. sing.	divergente	divergentere	divergentste
	n. sing.	divergent	divergenter	divergentste
	plural	divergente	divergentere	divergentste
definite		divergente	divergentere	divergentste
partitive		divergents	divergenters	—

Derived terms

• divergentie
• neurodivergent

Descendants

• Indonesian: divergen

French

Etymology 1

From Latin dīvergentem.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /di.vɛʁ.ʒɑ̃/

Adjective

divergent (feminine divergente, masculine plural divergents, feminine plural divergentes)

1. divergent

Related terms

• diverger

Etymology 2

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /di.vɛʁʒ/

Verb

divergent

1. third-person plural present indicative/subjunctive of diverger

Further reading

• “divergent”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

German

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin divergens.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˌdivɛʁˈɡɛnt]
• Hyphenation: di‧ver‧gent

• Audio:

  (file)

• Audio (Germany):

  (file)

Adjective

divergent (strong nominative masculine singular divergenter, comparative divergenter, superlative am divergentesten)

1. divergent

Declension

Positive forms of divergent

number & gender		singular			plural
		masculine	feminine	neuter
predicative		er ist divergent	sie ist divergent	es ist divergent	sie sind divergent
strong declension (without article)	nominative	divergenter	divergente	divergentes	divergente
	genitive	divergenten	divergenter	divergenten	divergenter
	dative	divergentem	divergenter	divergentem	divergenten
	accusative	divergenten	divergente	divergentes	divergente
weak declension (with definite article)	nominative	der divergente	die divergente	das divergente	die divergenten
	genitive	des divergenten	der divergenten	des divergenten	der divergenten
	dative	dem divergenten	der divergenten	dem divergenten	den divergenten
	accusative	den divergenten	die divergente	das divergente	die divergenten
mixed declension (with indefinite article)	nominative	ein divergenter	eine divergente	ein divergentes	(keine) divergenten
	genitive	eines divergenten	einer divergenten	eines divergenten	(keiner) divergenten
	dative	einem divergenten	einer divergenten	einem divergenten	(keinen) divergenten
	accusative	einen divergenten	eine divergente	ein divergentes	(keine) divergenten

Comparative forms of divergent

number & gender		singular			plural
		masculine	feminine	neuter
predicative		er ist divergenter	sie ist divergenter	es ist divergenter	sie sind divergenter
strong declension (without article)	nominative	divergenterer	divergentere	divergenteres	divergentere
	genitive	divergenteren	divergenterer	divergenteren	divergenterer
	dative	divergenterem	divergenterer	divergenterem	divergenteren
	accusative	divergenteren	divergentere	divergenteres	divergentere
weak declension (with definite article)	nominative	der divergentere	die divergentere	das divergentere	die divergenteren
	genitive	des divergenteren	der divergenteren	des divergenteren	der divergenteren
	dative	dem divergenteren	der divergenteren	dem divergenteren	den divergenteren
	accusative	den divergenteren	die divergentere	das divergentere	die divergenteren
mixed declension (with indefinite article)	nominative	ein divergenterer	eine divergentere	ein divergenteres	(keine) divergenteren
	genitive	eines divergenteren	einer divergenteren	eines divergenteren	(keiner) divergenteren
	dative	einem divergenteren	einer divergenteren	einem divergenteren	(keinen) divergenteren
	accusative	einen divergenteren	eine divergentere	ein divergenteres	(keine) divergenteren

Superlative forms of divergent

number & gender		singular			plural
		masculine	feminine	neuter
predicative		er ist am divergentesten	sie ist am divergentesten	es ist am divergentesten	sie sind am divergentesten
strong declension (without article)	nominative	divergentester	divergenteste	divergentestes	divergenteste
	genitive	divergentesten	divergentester	divergentesten	divergentester
	dative	divergentestem	divergentester	divergentestem	divergentesten
	accusative	divergentesten	divergenteste	divergentestes	divergenteste
weak declension (with definite article)	nominative	der divergenteste	die divergenteste	das divergenteste	die divergentesten
	genitive	des divergentesten	der divergentesten	des divergentesten	der divergentesten
	dative	dem divergentesten	der divergentesten	dem divergentesten	den divergentesten
	accusative	den divergentesten	die divergenteste	das divergenteste	die divergentesten
mixed declension (with indefinite article)	nominative	ein divergentester	eine divergenteste	ein divergentestes	(keine) divergentesten
	genitive	eines divergentesten	einer divergentesten	eines divergentesten	(keiner) divergentesten
	dative	einem divergentesten	einer divergentesten	einem divergentesten	(keinen) divergentesten
	accusative	einen divergentesten	eine divergenteste	ein divergentestes	(keine) divergentesten

Further reading

• “divergent” in Duden online
• “divergent” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache

Latin

Verb

dīvergent

1. third-person plural future active indicative of dīvergō

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from French divergent.

Adjective

divergent m or n (feminine singular divergentă, masculine plural divergenți, feminine and neuter plural divergente)

1. divergent

Declension

Declension of divergent

		singular				plural
		masculine	neuter	feminine		masculine	neuter	feminine
nominative- accusative	indefinite	divergent		divergentă		divergenți	divergente
	definite	divergentul		divergenta		divergenții	divergentele
genitive- dative	indefinite	divergent		divergente		divergenți	divergente
	definite	divergentului		divergentei		divergenților	divergentelor

Swedish

Adjective

divergent

1. divergent

   Antonym: konvergent

Declension

Inflection of divergent

Indefinite	positive	comparative	superlative1
common singular	divergent	—	—
neuter singular	divergent	—	—
plural	divergenta	—	—
masculine plural2	divergente	—	—
Definite	positive	comparative	superlative
masculine singular3	divergente	—	—
all	divergenta	—	—

¹ The indefinite superlative forms are only used in the predicative.
² Dated or archaic.
³ Only used, optionally, to refer to things whose natural gender is masculine.