compartmentalize

verb

com·​part·​men·​tal·​ize kəm-ˌpärt-ˈmen-tə-ˌlīz 

ˌkäm-

compartmentalized; compartmentalizing

transitive verb

: to separate into isolated compartments or categories

compartmentalization

kəm-ˌpärt-ˌmen-tə-lə-ˈzā-shən 

ˌkäm-

noun

Synonyms

• assort
• break down
• categorize
• class
• classify
• codify
• compartment
• digest
• distinguish
• distribute
• grade
• group
• peg
• place
• range
• rank
• relegate
• separate
• sort
• type

Examples of compartmentalize in a Sentence

He compartmentalizes his life by keeping his job and his personal life separate.

The company has compartmentalized its services.

Recent Examples on the Web

George Clooney had flown back to Italy and compartmentalized his encounter with the President at the L.A. fund-raiser, chalking it up to the President’s eighty-one spins around the sun and Biden’s own long trip from Italy, even if the President had flown in on Air Force One. —Jake Tapper, New Yorker, 13 May 2025

Court records have also shown the Trump administration is unable to account for the scope of DOGE's data access, or the need for a small number of staffers to have virtually unfettered access to sensitive, compartmentalized data across the government. —Stephen Fowler, NPR, 11 Apr. 2025

Kirk’s ability to compartmentalize is the trait most lauded by Schneider. —Mitch Bannon, New York Times, 26 Apr. 2025

This practice of compartmentalizing my thinking has significantly boosted my productivity. —Expert Panel®, Forbes, 5 Mar. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1925, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for compartmentalize

• contextualize
• industrialize
• materialise
• materialize
• memorialize
• microenterprise
• overemphasize
• particularize
• revolutionise
• revolutionize
• actualize
• antagonize