Wakeru and Other Japanese Verbs for Divide, Separate, and Break

How to distinguish 分ける, 分かれる, 別れる, 割る, 折る, 裂く, 砕く, 千切る, and other Japanese verbs of division

Category: Concepts & Distinctions

How do you say “divide” in Japanese? And how do you choose the right verb among 分ける, 分かれる, 別れる, 割る, 折る, 裂く, 砕く, and many others?

Japanese does not have a single verb that covers the entire semantic range of “divide,” “separate,” “break,” or “break into pieces.”

The choice depends on what is actually happening: Is someone deliberately dividing something? Is a group splitting up on its own? Are two people parting ways? Is an object breaking into pieces? Is a surface tearing? Is something being shattered?

The first verb to learn is 分ける (wakeru), which describes the act of dividing, separating, distributing, or classifying something. It is a transitive verb: someone divides something. This is why it normally takes the particle を: ケーキを分ける means “to divide a cake,” while クラスを二つのグループに分ける means “to divide the class into two groups.”

Alongside 分ける, we find 分かれる (wakareru), which is instead an intransitive verb. Here, no one directly divides anything: the subject itself divides, separates, branches off, or spreads into several parts.

This is why, for example, we say 道が二つに分かれる (“the road splits in two”), 意見が分かれる (“opinions are divided”), or 学生がグループに分かれる (“the students split into groups”).

The pair 分ける / 分かれる immediately illustrates one of the most important points in this guide: many Japanese verbs of division must be understood through the distinction between transitive and intransitive forms.

In general, a transitive verb of division typically uses を to mark the object being divided, whereas an intransitive verb uses が to mark the subject that divides or separates, often followed by に or と to indicate the resulting parts or the person or thing from which it separates.

Another essential distinction is between 分かれる and 別れる. Both are pronounced wakareru, but they do not mean the same thing.

• 分かれる refers to division, branching, or separation into parts: a road that forks, a group that splits up, opinions that diverge.

• 別れる, by contrast, mainly refers to separation between people or the end of a relationship: 友達と別れる (“to part ways with a friend”), 恋人と別れる (“to break up with one’s partner”), 家族と別れて暮らす (“to live apart from one’s family”).

  In other words, 分かれる belongs to the semantic field of division and branching, whereas 別れる belongs more specifically to that of personal or relational separation.

The picture becomes even richer when we move from “dividing” to “breaking” or “breaking apart.”

割る (waru) often means to break or divide something into parts, especially rigid objects or things that can be portioned: a glass, an egg, a bar, a number.

The corresponding intransitive form is 割れる (wareru): コップが割れる means “the glass breaks / cracks.”

折る (oru) and 折れる (oreru), by contrast, concern something that bends or breaks at a particular point: a branch, an umbrella, a bone, a sheet of paper.

裂く (saku) and 裂ける (sakeru) are used when fabric, paper, or skin is torn or split open, and can also be used figuratively of relationships or bonds.

Finally, 砕く (kudaku) and 砕ける (kudakeru) convey the idea of shattering, reducing something to smaller pieces, or losing its compact form.

To find your way through these verbs, then, it is not enough to ask “how do you say divide in Japanese?” The more useful question is: what kind of division is taking place? Is someone distributing something? Is a whole splitting into groups? Are two people breaking up? Is a rigid object breaking? Is something bending until it snaps? Is a surface tearing? Or is something being reduced to fragments?

In this article, we will examine the main Japanese verbs connected with the ideas of dividing, separating, breaking, and breaking into parts. We will look at the meaning of each verb, transitive/intransitive pairs, the most common particles (を, が, に, と, で), differences between similar verbs, physical and abstract uses, and the most natural examples for understanding which verb to choose in each context.

Before moving on to the individual sections, the table below summarizes the main verbs in common use connected with the ideas of dividing, splitting, breaking, and so on.

Important note: The article also covers many verbs not shown in the table, but you are not expected to learn every one of them.

As with the guide to Japanese verbs of upward and downward movement, this article is intended as a comprehensive reference for students who find it difficult to navigate this maze of subtle verbal distinctions. The table of contents on the left lets you jump directly to the verb or verbs you are interested in. At present, the table of contents works properly only on desktop; it will be a little while before it works correctly on mobile as well.

分ける (wakeru) and 分かれる (wakareru): Meaning, Usage, and Difference

Of all the Japanese verbs connected with the idea of dividing, 分ける (wakeru) is probably the most important one to understand first. It is the basic verb used when someone divides, separates, distributes, or classifies something.

That is why it appears in such a wide range of contexts: dividing a cake, separating objects, dividing people into groups, distinguishing between categories, or dividing up a quantity.

Alongside 分ける, we find 分かれる (wakareru), which shares the same root but works differently.

The main difference is both grammatical and semantic: 分ける is transitive, so someone divides something; 分かれる is intransitive, so something divides, separates, or branches off.

Understanding this pair is essential because it illustrates one of the most common patterns found among Japanese verbs of division.

分ける (wakeru): Meaning “to Divide, Separate, or Share Out” as a Transitive Verb 

It means to divide something into several parts or to separate something. It is a very general, commonly used verb that applies to both physical and conceptual divisions. The item being divided is marked by を, while に often introduces the resulting number of parts or categories.

For example:

• ケーキを四つに分けました。– Keeki o yottsu ni wakemashita. – I divided the cake into four pieces.

• 先生は学生を二つのグループに分けた。– Sensei wa gakusei o futatsu no gurūpu ni waketa. – The teacher divided the students into two groups.

In the latter example, we can see the construction AをBに分ける, where A (学生, “the students”) is the object being divided and B (二つのグループ, “two groups”) indicates the result of the division.

分ける can also be used to separate two elements, using the patterns AとBを分ける (“to separate A and B”) or AをBから分ける (“to separate A from B”), depending on the context.

In addition, 分ける can mean to share out or distribute something among several people: for example, みんなでケーキを分ける means “to share the cake with everyone (so that everyone can eat some).”

In such cases, the construction みんなでAを分ける can be used, with で indicating an action performed jointly by several people.

In terms of register, 分ける is neutral and suitable for both everyday language and more formal contexts. In informal conversation, the expression 半分こにする (hanbunko ni suru, “to split something half and half”) can also be used as a colloquial way of saying “to divide in half”, but 分ける remains completely natural.

The word わけ, now generally written 訳, is also etymologically linked to 分ける. From the concrete idea of “dividing” and “distinguishing,” it developed more abstract meanings connected with understanding how a situation is structured, explaining it, and identifying the reason behind it.

The origin and semantic development of 訳 (わけ, wake) are explored in a dedicated article.

分かれる (wakareru): Meaning “to Divide, Separate, or Branch Off” as an Intransitive Verb

It describes something dividing, separating, or branching off on its own, or appearing in a divided state. The entity that divides is marked by が, while に introduces the resulting parts.

Typical examples:

• クラスが二つのグループに分かれた。 – Kurasu ga futatsu no gurūpu ni wakareta. – The class split into two groups.

• この道は途中で左右に分かれます。 – Kono michi wa tochū de sayū ni wakaremasu. – This road forks left and right partway along.

• 意見が分かれることが多い。 – Iken ga wakareru koto ga ōi. – Opinions are often divided.

In these examples, Xが…に分かれる means “X divides into …”. For example, 意見が分かれる (iken ga wakareru) is a common expression meaning that “opinions differ” or “opinion is divided”—in other words, that there is disagreement.

Note that 分かれる can also describe a mutual separation, and と may be used when the other party is explicitly mentioned. For example, 二人が分かれた (futari ga wakareta) means “the two went their separate ways.”

However, when people part in the sense of breaking up or saying goodbye, Japanese normally favors the verb 別れる with the particle と, as we will see below.

In summary, 分ける and 分かれる form a fundamental transitive/intransitive pair: 分ける describes someone’s action of dividing something, whereas 分かれる describes something or someone dividing or separating. This distinction is crucial to using many Japanese verbs correctly.

Parting, Breaking Up with Someone: 別れる (wakareru)

Although 別れる (wakareru) is written with a different kanji from 分かれる, it has the same pronunciation and the related meaning “to part” or “to separate”, but is used in a more specific range of contexts.別れる is an intransitive verb used primarily for:

• Separating from another person (parting, saying goodbye, ending a relationship);

• Parting or saying goodbye at a particular place or time;

• More rarely, dividing in the sense of branching off (although 分かれる is more commonly used for this).

The typical constructions are XはYと別れる (“X parts from Y”, where と marks the person X parts from) and 場所で別れる (“to part at a particular place”).

Here are some examples:

• 彼は長年の恋人と別れた。 – Kare wa naganen no koibito to wakareta. – He broke up with his long-term partner.

• 二人は駅で別れました。 – Futari wa eki de wakaremashita. – The two parted at the station (they said goodbye and went their separate ways).

• 私たちはここでお別れですね。 – Watashitachi wa koko de owakare desu ne. – This is where we say goodbye, then.

Notice that 別れる is almost always used with people (or animate beings) and implies an emotional or geographical separation: the end of an encounter, the end of a romantic relationship (e.g. 恋人と別れる, “to break up with one’s partner”), or the separation of a group (別れる can, for example, describe soldiers splitting into two teams, although neutral “splitting into groups” can also be expressed with 分かれる).

One important detail: to say “we broke up,” Japanese uses 別れました, the polite past form of 別れる. This should not be confused with 分かれました: the two forms sound identical, but the kanji distinguish relational separation (別) from division or branching (分).

Moreover, 別れる is often accompanied by お when referring politely to the act of parting: お別れ (o-wakare) means “parting/farewell.” For example, お別れの挨拶 means “words of farewell.”

別れる vs 分かれる: The Difference Between the Two Wakareru

Although both can express some form of “separation,” 別れる is used mainly when people part ways, end a relationship, or say goodbye, whereas 分かれる is more general and is used for groups, roads, opinions, and similar cases of division or branching.

For example, “the group split in two” is more naturally expressed as グループが二つに分かれた, whereas “the two friends parted ways” would be 二人の友達は別れた, meaning that they went their separate ways or fell out.

A useful rule of thumb is: 別れる (with the kanji 別) for human separations (“to part from someone, break up, end a relationship”), and 分かれる (with the kanji 分) for the division of things, groups, or concepts.

This distinction is not absolute, but it is a useful rule of thumb.

Register

別れる is neutral and can be used in both formal and informal contexts. In highly formal or literary contexts, the verb 離別する (ribetsu suru, a more technical Sino-Japanese term) may also be used for “to part,” but it is rare in everyday speech.

Moving Apart and Creating Distance: 離す (hanasu) and 離れる (hanareru)

Another group of verbs related to separation involves moving something or someone away from something else, or detaching one thing from another.

離す (hanasu) – to Separate, Move Apart, or Let Go (Transitive) 

It means to put distance between one thing and another or to let go of something one has been holding. It is generally used in constructions such as AをBから離す (“to move A away from B”) or AとBを離す (“to separate A and B”). Examples:

• 子供と親を無理やり離す。 – Kodomo to oya o muriyari hanasu. – To forcibly separate a child from their parent.

• 犬を猫から離しておく。 – Inu o neko kara hanashite oku. – To keep the dog away from the cat.

• もう手を離してもいいよ。 – Mō te o hanashite mo ii yo. – You can let go of my hand now (literally, “you can release the hand”).

In the last example, 手を離す means “to let go of someone’s hand/release one’s grip.” Notice the use of を to mark the object (手, the hand) and the absence of に or と because the grip is simply released without identifying another party.

離れる (hanareru) – to Separate, Move Away, or Become Detached (Intransitive)

It means to be at a distance from something or to move away from it. It typically takes が to mark the subject moving away and から to indicate what it is moving away from. For example:

• 故郷を離れてもう十年になる。 – Furusato o hanarete mō jūnen ni naru. – It has already been ten years since I left my hometown.

• 二人の席が少し離れて座っていた。 – Futari no seki ga sukoshi hanarete suwatte ita. – The two seats were set a little apart from each other.

• 子供から目を離さないで。 – Kodomo kara me o hanasanaide. – Do not take your eyes off the child (literally, “do not separate your eyes from the child”).

Here we see Xから離れる used to mean “to leave X / move away from X” (e.g. 故郷を離れる, “to leave one’s hometown”) and the adverbial form 離れて used to indicate distance between two things (seats set apart). 

目を離す is an idiomatic expression: me o hanasu means “to take one’s eyes off something” (literally, “to separate one’s eyes from [something]”).

Differences and Notes 

離す/離れる imply physical or figurative distance. For example, 離れる can also mean “to be separated by a certain distance in time or space.”

彼とは年が離れている – “there is a large age gap between him and me” or “we are far apart in age.”

In contexts involving separation, these verbs are used when the focus is on the distance between elements, rather than on dividing a whole into equal parts.

Register

Here too, the register is neutral. 離す is standard colloquial Japanese. 離れる also appears frequently in formal expressions as well as everyday language—for example, 離れ離れになる (hanarebanare ni naru, “to become separated from one another”) in tragic contexts such as families separated by war.

Breaking and Snapping Objects: 割る・割れる, 折る・折れる, 砕く・砕ける, 破る・破れる, 裂く・裂ける

When “dividing” means breaking or snapping an object into several parts, Japanese has different verbs depending on the kind of object and the way it breaks. These verbs often form transitive/intransitive pairs. The following sections examine the main ones.

割る (わる) and 割れる (われる) – Breaking Rigid Objects, Cracking, and Dividing (Including in Mathematics)

割る (waru) – to Break, Split, or Divide (Transitive) 

It means to break something solid into pieces or to divide something into parts, including figurative and mathematical uses.

It is used with an object marked by を. 割る is commonly used with hard or fragile objects that shatter or split, such as glass, plates, and hard fruit. 割る is also the standard verb for “to divide” in mathematics (e.g. 10を2で割る, “to divide 10 by 2”).

Examples:

• 皿を落として割ってしまった。 – Sara o otoshite watte shimatta. – I dropped a plate and broke it into pieces.

• スイカをみんなで割って食べた。 – Suika o minna de watte tabeta. – We all split open a watermelon and ate it together (a Japanese summer tradition).

• 28を7で割ると4になる。 – 28 o 7 de waru to 4 ni naru. – Twenty-eight divided by seven is four.

In these sentences, Aを割る means “to break A” or “to divide A.” In a mathematical context, the construction is AをBで割る (“to divide A by B”).

Another common use of 割る is to dilute an alcoholic drink with something else: for example, 焼酎を水で割る (shōchū o mizu de waru) means “to dilute shōchū with water” (literally, “to divide the liquor with water”). This use extends the underlying idea of reducing or dividing the drink’s alcoholic strength.

割れる (wareru) – to Break, Crack, or Shatter (Intransitive) 

It indicates that something breaks or breaks into pieces. The subject, marked by が, is the object that breaks. It is often accompanied by expressions describing how it breaks, such as 粉々に (konagona ni, “into tiny pieces/shards”). Typical objects include glass, ceramics, mirrors, and so on. Examples:

• 地震で窓ガラスが割れた。 – Jishin de mado garasu ga wareta. – The windowpane shattered in the earthquake.

• そのコップ、割れているから危ないよ。 – Sono koppu, warete iru kara abunai yo. – That glass is cracked, so it is dangerous.

• 意見が割れた。 – Iken ga wareta. – Opinions were divided (the group was not unanimous).

The first example shows how 原因 + で expresses a cause: jishin de means “because of the earthquake,” indicating what caused the glass to break. 割れる is also used metaphorically: 意見が割れる is a common way to say that “there is no consensus and opinions are divided.”

In political or electoral contexts, 票が割れる (hyō ga wareru) is used when votes are split or scattered among candidates.

Another idiomatic expression is 腹を割って話す (hara o watte hanasu), literally “to speak by splitting open one’s stomach,” meaning “to speak frankly, to open up completely.” Here, 割って is the -te form of 割る, used figuratively to convey the act of “opening up.”

Formal and Informal Usage

割る/割れる are neutral. In journalistic or formal language, 分断する, discussed below, may be used for figurative “division” when greater emphasis is desired, but 割れる remains common—for example, “the party split (割れた).”

壊す/壊れる can also mean “to break” in a general sense, but these verbs imply damaging something or causing it to stop working, rather than dividing it into pieces. 割る, by contrast, specifically emphasizes separation into parts or fragmentation.

Note on related nouns: 割ったお皿 is a “broken plate”; 割れ目 (wareme) is a “crack” or “fissure.” 割合 (wariai) means “percentage, proportion” and is connected with the mathematical concept of division.

Etymological note: 割る and 割れる contain the idea of dividing into pieces. Japanese dictionary definitions explain that 割れる is used when “a hard object separates into several parts and becomes scattered,” which neatly captures the image of a glass or plate breaking.

折る (おる) and 折れる (おれる) – Snapping or Breaking Long, Thin Objects (Also “to Fold”)

折る (oru) – to Fold or Snap (Transitive) 

It means to break something long and thin by bending it until it snaps. It is the verb used when breaking a branch, stick, or pencil, for example, and also when folding things such as paper (折り紙 - origami) or bending one’s body (腰を折る, “to bend at the waist”). In contexts involving “division,” it generally refers to snapping a long object into two or more pieces. It takes を. Examples:

• 棒を二つに折った。 – Bō o futatsu ni otta. – I snapped the stick in two.

• 強風で木の枝を折ってしまった。 – Kyōfū de ki no eda o otte shimatta. – I ended up breaking a tree branch in the strong wind.

• 紙を半分に折ってください。 – Kami o hanbun ni otte kudasai. – Please fold the sheet of paper in half.

Notice that 折る can mean either “to snap or break” or simply “to fold” without causing any damage; the context determines which meaning applies.

If the object can withstand being bent, as paper can, 折る means “to fold” or “to bend.”

With rigid objects such as branches or sticks, the same bending action causes them to snap. 指を折る is a notable case: it normally means “to break a finger,” rather than merely bending it.

One special case is 骨を折る. Although it is grammatically transitive, it is often used when someone breaks one of their own bones.

For example, 足の骨を折った means “I broke a bone in my leg.”

折る also appears in idiomatic expressions such as 心を折る, “to break someone’s spirit by deeply discouraging them,” and 腰を折る, “to interrupt someone abruptly,” literally “to bend or break at the waist.”

折れる (oreru) – to Snap, Break, or Bend (Intransitive)

It indicates that something long has snapped or bent. The item that breaks is marked by が.

Examples:

• 強風で木の枝が折れた。 – Kyōfū de ki no eda ga oreta. – A tree branch snapped in the strong wind.

• その衝撃で骨が折れた。 – Sono shōgeki de hone ga oreta. – The bone broke from the impact.

• 彼は途中で心が折れてしまった。 – Kare wa tochū de kokoro ga orete shimatta. – His spirit broke along the way (he lost motivation and gave up partway through).

As noted above, 折れる is used for branches and other long objects that snap, as well as figuratively for a person’s will or motivation. 折れる is commonly used for wood, pencils, umbrellas, and other thin, straight objects that snap in two or become bent.

In other words, we are talking about things that break with a sharp snapping sound (ボキっと, boki).

Differences in Usage

In English, we might use “break” for both a glass and a stick, but in Japanese, as we have seen, it is more natural to say 皿を割る (to break a plate) and 枝を折る (to snap a branch) because the verbs distinguish the type of breakage.

Thus, when something breaks through bending—a stick, branch, or bone—we use 折る/折れる.

When it shatters, as glass or ceramics do, we use 割る/割れる.

This distinction is important.

For example, in the case of the skull (頭蓋骨), people sometimes disagree over whether 割れる or 折れる should be used for a fracture.

骨 (bones) normally takes 折れる because bones are treated as long, rigid structures, whereas 割る/割れる may be used for “splitting one’s head open” when referring to an open wound.

These are nuances, but they show how precisely Japanese specifies the type of breakage.

Register

折る/折れる are neutral. A more formal way to say that a bone has been fractured is 骨折する (kossetsu suru), while 骨が折れた is common in everyday conversation. Interestingly, the idiom 骨が折れる also means “to be laborious or demanding,” as though the effort were enough to break one’s bones.

砕く (kudaku) and 砕ける (kudakeru) – Crushing or Shattering into Small Pieces

砕く (kudaku) – to Crush or Break into Pieces (Transitive)

It means to break something into very small pieces or pulverize it, and it can also mean to shatter something figuratively, such as a dream or someone’s heart. It takes を.

For example:

• 氷を細かく砕いた。 – Kōri o komakaku kudaita.. – I crushed the ice into small pieces.

• 彼女の夢を砕いてしまった。 – Kanojo no yume o kudaite shimatta. – I shattered her dream.

In the first example, 細かく砕く means “to crush finely.” In the second, 夢を砕く is a figurative use meaning “to shatter someone’s dreams.” Other common concrete objects include 岩を砕く (to break up a rock) and 歯を砕く (to shatter a tooth).

砕ける (kudakeru) – to Shatter, Crumble, or Break Apart (Intransitive)

It indicates that something has shattered into many pieces. Examples:

• コップが粉々に砕けた。 – Koppu ga konagona ni kudaketa. – The glass shattered into tiny pieces.

• 波が砕ける。 – Nami ga kudakeru. – The wave breaks against the shore.

“粉々に砕けた” combines 砕ける with 粉々 (konagona, “into powder/tiny fragments”), emphasizing that the object has completely broken apart. 波が砕ける is a poetic image for waves breaking.

There is also a figurative use: 砕ける口調 describes a very casual, informal way of speaking, as though the formality of the language had been broken down. Similarly, 砕けた話し方 means speaking in a relaxed, informal manner.

Register

砕く/砕ける are neutral in register but tend to appear in somewhat more literary or specific contexts. You would not normally use 砕けた to say “a glass broke”; 割れた is preferred unless the glass has completely shattered. In that case, one might say 砕け散った, “shattered and scattered.” 砕けた日本語 is a term that may appear in language-learning materials to mean “colloquial, informal Japanese.”

破る (yaburu) and 破れる (yabureru) – Tearing Flexible Materials and Breaking Rules

破る (yaburu) to Tear, Break, or Violate (Transitive)

It means to tear something thin and flexible, such as paper or fabric, or to break or violate something figuratively, such as a promise or rule.

Common physical objects include 紙を破る (“to tear a sheet of paper”) and 布を破る (“to tear fabric”). Abstract objects include 約束を破る (“to break a promise”) and 記録を破る (“to break a record”).

Interestingly, the same verb used for tearing paper is also used for breaking a record.

Examples:

• 手紙をビリビリに破った。 – Tegami o biribiri ni yabutta. – I tore the letter to pieces (“biribiri” is the onomatopoeia for tearing paper).

• 彼は約束を破った。 – Kare wa yakusoku o yabutta. – He broke his promise.

破れる (yabureru) – to Tear or Rip (Intransitive) 

It indicates that something flexible has torn or split. In a figurative use, 夢が破れる means that a dream has been dashed. The homophonous verb 敗れる, written with a different kanji, means “to be defeated.”

Examples:

• 服が破れてしまった。 – Fuku ga yaburete shimatta. – My clothes got ripped.

• 袋が破れて、中の物が落ちた。 – Fukuro ga yaburete, naka no mono ga ochita. – The bag tore, and its contents fell out.

• 彼の夢が破れた。 – Kare no yume ga yabureta. – His dream was shattered (literally, “torn”).

• 決勝戦で敗れた。 – Kesshōsen de yabureta. – The team was defeated in the final.

破れる is used when thin, soft things such as clothes, bags, or paper “tear or come apart.”

破れる covers cases in which the damage is specifically a tear rather than a generic break: a hole in a garment, a split bag, and so on.

It should not be confused with the homophonous 敗れる, “to be defeated,” which is used of competitors, teams, armies, and similar subjects.

Differences in Usage

破る/破れる are used for flexible materials that tear and, figuratively, for promises or rules that are broken. We would not use 割る for tearing paper, nor 破る for breaking a plate. This is a good example of why the distinction matters: if you say 紙が破れた, everyone understands that the paper tore; if you were to say 紙が割れた instead, it would sound strange because paper does not “crack”; it “tears.”

Conversely, コップが破れた is wrong for a glass because glass does not tear; 割れた is required. The choice of verb therefore depends on the nature of the object and the kind of division involved.

Register 

These verbs are neutral as well. In formal language, 破損する (hason suru, “to become damaged”) can be used as an all-purpose verb meaning “to break or sustain damage,” but specific verbs such as 割れる, 折れる, and 破れる are also extremely common in formal contexts. An accident report, for example, might say “〇〇が破損した” or, more specifically, “画面が割れた,” “コードが裂けた,” and so on, depending on the desired degree of precision.

裂く (saku) and 裂ける (sakeru) – Tearing or Splitting Along a Line (a Clean Rip)

裂く (saku) – to Tear, Rip Open, or Force Apart (Transitive) 

It means to tear something forcefully along a line, often fabric, thick paper, or similar materials. In some contexts, it means to cut or split something open, as with the belly of a fish. For example:

• 布を引き裂く。 – Nuno o hikisaku. – To rip a piece of fabric in two by pulling it apart.

• 魚の腹を裂いて内臓を出す。 – Sakana no hara o saite naizō o dasu. – To slit open the fish’s belly and remove the innards.

引き裂く (hikisaku, “to tear apart by pulling”) is common in descriptions of violent separation, including metaphorical uses: 二人の仲を引き裂く means “to tear the two lovers apart,” separating them against their will.

裂ける (sakeru) – to Tear Open or Split (Intransitive) 

It describes something tearing open or splitting along a line.

For example:

• シャツが裂けてしまった。 – Shatsu ga sakete shimatta. – My shirt tore open.

• 大地が裂けた。 – Daichi ga saketa. – The ground split open, for example during an earthquake.

• 口が裂けても言えない。 – Kuchi ga saketemo ienai. – “I would not say it even if my mouth were torn open,” an idiom meaning “I would never reveal it, no matter what.”

裂ける evokes a clean opening or a fissure forming.

Differences

Compared with 破る/破れる, 裂く/裂ける often imply a cleaner tear running lengthwise. For example, 裂け目 can refer to a “tear or split” in clothing or a “fissure or crevice” in the ground.

We might say that 破る is more like “tearing something up or making holes in it,” whereas 裂く is “making a clean rip.”

In many cases, however, they are nearly synonymous. A torn garment, for example, may be described as 服が破れた／裂けた, although 破れた is more common. 裂く also has violent or dramatic overtones, as in 引き裂く, to rip apart by force, and 胸を引き裂かれる思い, a feeling as though one’s chest were being torn open—in other words, intense emotional pain.

Register

裂く/裂ける are more common in narratives and literary expressions and are not used in everyday speech as often as 割る/破る for “to break.”

For example, 破れた is normally used to say “my shirt tore.” 裂けた is used only when there is a distinct, clean rip or gash. It therefore sounds slightly more marked or literary.

Summary of How These Verbs of Breakage Are Used

In short, when we need to say that something breaks or is broken, we choose the verb according to the nature of the material and the way it breaks:

• 割る/割れる – for rigid or fragile objects that crack or shatter into pieces, such as glass, ceramics, and watermelons.

• 折る/折れる – for elongated objects that snap through bending, such as branches, sticks, bones, pencils, and umbrellas.

• 砕く/砕ける – for crushing or shattering something into tiny fragments, such as ice, shattered glass, or rocks, and for shattering dreams.

• 破る/破れる – for flexible materials that tear, such as paper and fabric, and for breaking rules or promises.

• 裂く/裂ける – for forcefully tearing or splitting something open along a clean line, as with fabric or the ground.

All these pairs follow the pattern in which the verb ending in -u (waru, oru, kudaku, yaburu, saku) is transitive, with an agent acting on an object marked by を, while the verb ending in -eru (wareru, oreru, kudakeru, yabureru, sakeru) is intransitive, with the subject undergoing the event and marked by が. This regularity makes the verbs easier to remember.

Dividing and Sharing with Others: 分け合う, 分かち合う, 分配する, 分担する, 共有する

“Dividing” often takes on the meaning of sharing something with others or apportioning something, such as resources or tasks, among a group. Japanese has several verbs for these concepts, which are presented in the following sections.

分け合う (wakeau) – to Share by Dividing Something Among Ourselves

分け合う is formed from 分ける + 合う, with 合う expressing reciprocity: “to divide something among one another.”

Grammatically, it is a transitive verb meaning to divide something among two or more people, implying that each person receives a portion—in other words, to share.

It takes an object marked by を and often appears with expressions such as みんなで (minna de, “all together”) or 二人で (futari de, “between two people”) to clarify who is sharing.

Examples:

• 一つしかないパンをみんなで分け合って食べた。 – Hitotsu shika nai pan o minna de wakeatte tabeta. – There was only one loaf of bread, so we divided it among ourselves and ate it.

• 姉とケーキを分け合った。 – Ane to kēki o wakeatta. – I shared a cake with my sister; we divided it between us.

In these sentences, Xを分け合う means that X is shared or divided among the people involved. Notice the use of と in 姉とケーキを分け合った: literally, “together with my sister, I shared the cake.” For clarity, it is often possible to say Aと一緒にBを分け合う (“to divide B together with A”). In other cases, a plural group is already implicit, as in みんなで, “all together.”

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分け合う is standard colloquial Japanese and is suitable for everyday conversation. It is neither especially formal nor slang.

分かち合う (wakachiau) – to Share, Partake, or Experience Together

分かち合う has virtually the same meaning as 分け合う and is likewise a reciprocal transitive verb. The difference lies in register and usage: 分かち合う is perceived as slightly more formal or literary.

It is also often used for abstract concepts or emotions, such as joys, sorrows, and experiences, where “sharing” carries emotional weight, whereas 分け合う tends to be used for concrete things such as food, money, and objects.

For example:

• 喜びも悲しみも友と分かち合いたい。 – Yorokobi mo kanashimi mo tomo to wakachiai-tai. – I want to share both joys and sorrows with my friends.

• プレゼンの成功をチームのみんなで分かち合った。 – Purezen no seikō o chīmu no minna de wakachiatta. – The whole team shared in and celebrated the success of the presentation.

• 悲しみを分かち合うことができた。 – Kanashimi o wakachiau koto ga dekita. – We were able to share our grief.

Notice that these examples involve experiences or feelings, such as joy, sadness, and success. When speaking of food or tangible objects, 分け合う sounds more neutral, while 分かち合う gives the sentence an emphatic or poetic tone.

For example, パンを分かち合う is possible, but sounds more “solemn” or biblical, whereas パンを分け合う is the everyday expression.

Grammatically, it follows the same pattern as 分け合う: the object takes を, and the person with whom it is shared may be marked by と.

〜と分かち合う is extremely common in the sense of “to share with ~.”

Example: 喜びを友人と分かち合った - (“I shared my joy with a friend”).

Register

As noted, it is slightly more formal or literary. It is well suited to inspirational speeches, essays, and contexts in which emotional solidarity or cooperation is being emphasized. In ordinary language, when no special emphasis is intended, many speakers simply use 共有する, 一緒に喜ぶ, and similar expressions. Nevertheless, 分かち合う is perfectly natural and widely used, for example in phrases such as 苦しみを分かち合う (“to share in one another’s suffering”) in contexts of mutual support.

分かち合う and 分け合う – The Difference in Brief 

分かち合う and 分け合う are synonyms, but the former sounds somewhat more elevated. In general, 分かち合う is perceived as more literary and often appears with emotions, whereas 分け合う is more everyday and is typically used for tangible things.

For example, 「悲しみを分かち合う」 is correct and common, whereas 「悲しみを分け合う」 is not normally used. In that case, 分かち合う conveys the idea of “sharing in something together” rather than “physically dividing it.”

分配する (bunpaisuru) – to Distribute or Apportion (Formal)

分配する is a compound suru verb meaning to distribute or apportion something among several people. It is formed from 分, divide, and 配, distribute. It is a more formal, written term than 分ける or 分け合う.

It is typically used for resources, assets, or earnings and profits to be divided among the members of a group. Grammatically, it is transitive: XをYに分配する means “to distribute X among the recipients Y.”

Examples:

• 利益を平等に分配するべきだ。 – Rieki o byōdō ni bunpai suru beki da. – Profits should be distributed fairly.

• 救援物資が被災者たちに分配された。 – Kyūen busshi ga hisaisha-tachi ni bunpai sareta. – Relief supplies were distributed to the disaster victims.

In the first example, 利益 (rieki) means profits and 平等に means equally; in the second, note the passive form 分配された (“were distributed”) with 〜に marking the recipients.

In a less formal context, 配った (kubatta, from 配る) could have been used for “distributed,” but 分配する emphasizes allocation into shares.

Register

Fairly formal or technical. It appears in economics texts, bureaucratic instructions, and, for example, in Bible translations for “to distribute bread,” where it sounds more solemn than 分ける. In everyday speech, 配る (kubaru) is often used for “to distribute,” as is 分けてあげる (“to divide and give out”).

分担する (buntansuru) – to Divide Up Tasks or Expenses

分担する means to divide a burden or workload among several people, so that each person takes responsibility for one part.

It is used for tasks, responsibilities, and expenses. Thus, expressions such as “to divide up the tasks” or “to split the expenses” are rendered with 分担する. The patterns are Xを分担する (to share or divide up X) and AとBでXを分担する (A and B divide X between them). Examples:

• 夫婦で家事を分担しています。 – Fūfu de kaji o buntan shite imasu. – My spouse and I share the household chores.

• チームメンバーがそれぞれ役割を分担した。 – Chīmu menbā ga sorezore yakuwari o buntan shita. – Each member of the team took on a different role.

• このプロジェクトでは皆が仕事を分担しなければならない。 – Kono purojekuto dewa mina ga shigoto o buntan shinakereba naranai. – Everyone has to share the workload on this project.

In the first example, 夫婦で means “as a married couple,” and 家事を分担する means to divide up the housework. In the second, それぞれ (“each”) emphasizes that every member took on one part of the work, namely a 役割, or assigned role.

分担 is often combined with the item being divided: 役割分担 (yakuwari buntan, division of roles) and 費用の分担 (hiyō no buntan, sharing of costs).

The expression 仕事を分担する corresponds directly to “to divide up the work” or “to share the workload.”

Register

Slightly formal, but still common in everyday speech when discussing how tasks are divided at home, at school, or at work.

For example, a parent might say 掃除は兄弟で分担しなさい (“you siblings should divide up the cleaning chores”). It is neither as bureaucratic as 分配 nor particularly colloquial; it is a normal, somewhat technical but frequently used term.

共有する (kyouyuusuru) – to Share by Holding or Using Something in Common

共有する means to share something with others or hold it in common, literally “to have in common.” It is used for sharing information, files, rooms, and experiences, and more generally whenever several people share possession or use of something.

Examples include sharing a document (ドキュメントを共有する), sharing a room (部屋を共有する), and sharing an experience (体験を共有する).

Examples:

• 私たちは重要な情報を共有した。 – Watashitachi wa jūyō na jōhō o kyōyū shita. – We shared the important information.

• 二人でアパートの部屋を共有している。 – Futari de apāto no heya o kyōyū shite iru. – The two of them share a room in an apartment.

• その喜びを皆と共有したい。 – Sono yorokobi o mina to kyōyū shitai. – I want to share that joy with everyone.

Grammatically, the construction is Xを共有する (“to share X”). The person or people with whom something is shared can be specified with 〜と: for example, 友人と写真を共有した (“I shared the photos with my friends”).

Differences from 分け合う/分かち合う

共有する is more technical and general: it means sharing something with others or holding it in common, and does not necessarily imply “dividing it into parts.”

Indeed, sharing a file does not involve dividing it into parts; you simply give other people access to it or provide them with a copy.

Sharing a room means using it together. Thus, 共有する often corresponds directly to English “to share,” without any emphasis on physical division.

分け合う and 分かち合う, by contrast, imply that the original item is divided or that its use, value, or benefit is shared among several people.

For example, パンを共有する is not normally used; 分け合う is appropriate because the bread must be physically divided. On the other hand, 経験を共有する (“to share an experience by talking about it”) makes perfect sense, whereas 分け合う does not sound suitable here.

Register

共有する is slightly formal or technical and has become extremely common in the digital age (file sharing = ファイル共有). In everyday conversation, “to share something” is sometimes expressed with 一緒に使う (“to use together”), while 分かち合う is preferred for emotions.

Nevertheless, 共有する is also common in workplace contexts. For example, “Let’s share this information with the team” is この情報をチームで共有しましょう.

Other Verbs Related to Division and Sharing

• 配る (くばる) – means “to distribute something to a number of recipients,” as in 資料を配る (to hand out materials or handouts). It is similar to 分配する but places less emphasis on exact allocation: 配る simply means going around and giving something to each person.

• 割り当てる (わりあてる) – means “to allocate or assign by dividing something up,” as in 仕事を割り当てる (to assign work to different people) and 予算を割り当てる (to allocate a budget).

• 振り分ける (ふりわける) – similar to 割り当てる, meaning to sort or allocate something among different people, groups, or categories (often 役割を振り分ける, “to assign roles”).

• シェアする – the English word “share” adapted into Japanese, extremely common in colloquial speech, especially among younger people or in social-media contexts (“シェアしよう” = “let’s share it,” either online or when sharing food).

  For example, 車をシェアする may be used instead of 共有する.

  In formal language, the native and Sino-Japanese verbs described above are preferred, but シェアする frequently appears in conversation among friends.

Idiomatic Expressions and Set Terms Connected with “Division”

Japanese also has set expressions and compound words that incorporate the idea of division. Here are some of the most significant:

• 分かち合う – already discussed above; in addition to its literal meaning, it appears in set phrases such as 喜びを分かち合う (to share joy) and 悲しみを分かち合う (to share sorrow), both common ways of expressing emotional solidarity.

• 分け前 (わけまえ) – refers to the share to which someone is entitled when something is divided among several people: one’s portion or cut.

  For example: 彼は利益の半分を自分の分け前として受け取った。 – Kare wa rieki no hanbun o jibun no wakemae toshite uketotta. – He received half of the profits as his share. In general, 分け前 is used for profits, loot, inheritances, or anything else divided among a group, with each person receiving a portion. The expression 分け前にあずかる (wakemae ni azukaru) means “to receive one’s share of something.”

• 山分け (やまわけ) – literally “dividing a mountain,” it means dividing something into equal shares among all participants, or quite simply “splitting it evenly.”

  It comes from the image of dividing a large heap, a “mountain” of something. For example: 賞金を三人で山分けした。 – Shōkin o sannin de yamawake shita. – “The three of us split the prize money equally.” This expression implies fairness and often refers to an unexpected gain that has to be shared out. 山分け is often used for a windfall or large sum that a group divides among its members.

  It is colloquial. In dialectal or older usage, 山分け could sometimes also mean “dividing something roughly by eye,” but today its main meaning is “to split equally.” One common phrase is 二人で山分けにしよう, “let’s split it fifty-fifty between the two of us.”

• 割り勘 (わりかん) – an abbreviation of 割前勘定 (warimae kanjō), it refers to “splitting the bill,” with the diners either dividing it evenly or each paying their own share.

  For example: 食事代は割り勘にしましょう。 – Shokujidai wa warikan ni shimashō. – Let’s split the cost of the meal, with each person paying their share.

• 割り勘 can be used as a noun or adverbially with に: “to go Dutch” is 割り勘にする. It is extremely common, especially among students: 割り勘で払おう, “let’s split the bill.”

  Note that 割り勘 normally implies equal shares per person, although it can sometimes mean that each person pays for what they consumed. In either case, no one person treats everyone else; everyone contributes.

  The distinction between 割り勘 and 各自払い in Japanese is subtle: 割り勘 usually refers to splitting the total equally, whereas 各自 (kakuji) or 自分の分 (jibun no bun) indicates that each person pays specifically for their own portion. In practice, however, 割り勘 is often used generically to mean that no single person pays and the total is shared, even when the shares are not equal.

• 折半 (せっぱん) – means to divide something in half, fifty-fifty. It comes from 折 (fold) and 半 (half), as though “folding something in two.” It is used mainly when costs or responsibilities are divided equally between two parties. For example: 今日の飲み会の代金は折半しよう。 – Kyō no nomikai no daikin wa seppan shiyō. – “Let’s split the cost of today’s drinks fifty-fifty.”

  Unlike 割り勘, which may involve more than two people, 折半 usually implies two parties, each paying half.

  For example, it may refer to expenses shared by two friends or two companies dividing the costs of a project. In informal conversation, 折半にする is often used, although 割り勘 is more common among friends because there are often more than two people involved.

• 二分する (にぶんする) – literally “to divide in two,” it means to split or divide into two parts. It is a more formal or academic term used when something is sharply divided into two groups or categories.

  For example: その法案は世論を二分した。 – Sono hōan wa yoron o nibun shita. – “That bill split public opinion into two opposing camps.”

  In historical or social analysis, expressions such as 国を二分する内戦 (“a civil war that divides the country in two”) are common. 二等分 (nitōbun) refers to dividing something into two equal parts, as in geometry, whereas 二分する is more specifically used for dividing something into two camps.

• 分断する (ぶんだんする) – means to divide or sever abruptly, cutting something in two. For example, 道路が崖崩れで分断された means “the road was cut in two or severed by a landslide.”

  It can also be metaphorical: 戦争は多くの家族を分断した。 – “The war divided and tore apart many families.” This verb suggests a clear-cut and often forced division rather than a gradual one. It is also used in politics: 国を分断する means to divide the country or create internal divisions.

• 分離する (ぶんりする) – to separate or become separated. It is a relatively formal term for physical or conceptual separation. Examples include 教会と国家を分離する (to separate Church and State) and 油と水は分離する (oil and water separate).

  Grammatically, it can be transitive or intransitive depending on the construction: AとBを分離する (to separate A and B) or AがBから分離する/分離される (A separates/is separated from B). It is widely used in technical contexts, such as chemistry and physics when separating components, and in legal language.

• 分裂する (ぶんれつする) – to split, divide, or fracture internally. It indicates an internal division into several parts and is often used for organizations, cells, or objects that split apart. For example: 政党が二つに分裂した。 – The political party split into two.

  Cell division is called 細胞分裂 (saibō bunretsu). 分裂する is intransitive, with the entity dividing marked as the subject by が; the transitive equivalent is 分裂させる (to make something divide or cause a split). It is a common term in politics and science.

• 区切る (くぎる) – literally “to mark off with boundaries or punctuation,” but more broadly it means to divide text, space, or time into segments.

  For example: 文章を段落に区切る (to divide a text into paragraphs), 時間を区切って作業する (to work by dividing time into blocks), and 部屋をカーテンで区切る (to divide a room with a curtain). 区切る indicates clear segmentation, often with a physical or figurative boundary. It is not used for physically breaking objects into parts, but for organizing sections.

• 区分する (くぶんする) and 分類する (ぶんるいする) – both mean to classify or divide into categories. 分類する means “to classify taxonomically,” such as books by genre or animals by species, whereas 区分する means “to section or subdivide by category or area.” Examples include 郵便物を地域で区分する (to sort mail by area) and 図書をジャンルごとに分類する (to classify books by genre). These are technical terms used in cataloguing and classification.

• 分け隔てなく (わけへだてなく) – an idiomatic expression meaning “without distinction” or “without discrimination.” It derives from 分け隔て, the act of drawing distinctions between people in how they are treated.

  Example: 彼女は誰に対しても分け隔てなく接する。 – Kanojo wa dare ni taishite mo wakehedate naku sessuru. – “She treats everyone equally, without making distinctions or showing favoritism.”

  This expression is adverbial: 分け隔てなく means impartially. It is often used as a positive description of someone who does not “divide” people into favored and unfavored categories.

• 喧嘩別れ (けんかわかれ) – literally “parting after a quarrel,” it describes a separation between friends, a couple, or business partners that occurred as the result of an argument. It is an idiomatic compound of 喧嘩 (quarrel) + 別れ (separation). Example: 二人は喧嘩別れした。 – “The two parted on bad terms after an argument.”

• 縁を切る (えんをきる) – “to cut ties”: an expression meaning to sever a relationship, whether with family, friends, or others. Here, 切る (to cut) is used figuratively in the sense of “separating completely.” Example: もうあの人とは縁を切った。 – “I have cut ties with that person.”

• ばらばら (onomatopoeia/adjectival expression) – means “scattered, broken into pieces, or each going their own way.” It is not a verb, but often accompanies verbs of division: 粉々に砕ける and ばらばらに砕ける both mean “to shatter into pieces,” with 粉々 emphasizing pulverization and ばらばら emphasizing that the pieces are scattered. Similarly, 家族がばらばらになる means “the family falls apart, with everyone going their own way.” In short, it describes a disorganized state of division.

Conclusions

As we have seen, Japanese offers a wide variety of terms for expressing the concept of “dividing” in all its physical, social, mathematical, and emotional nuances. To use them correctly, it is important to choose the verb that suits the context—the type of object or situation—and to remember the transitive/intransitive distinction, which in many cases is marked by differences in the verb ending, such as -eru versus -u.

With enough exposure and practice, these distinctions become intuitive, allowing you to express precisely how something is divided or shared. In conclusion, mastering the various Japanese verbs of division greatly enriches your expressive range, allowing you to describe situations of separation, distribution, and sharing accurately in contexts ranging from everyday conversation to technical and figurative usage.

Essential Bibliography

https://www.zhihu.com/question/460941732#:~:text=分ける、分かれる、分かつ有什么区别，该怎么用，不太明白？%20,展开

https://nihongojikan.jp/blog/20231101-4170/#:~:text=〖割れる〗

https://kotobank.jp/itjaword/dividere#:~:text=～%20gli%20utili%20tra%20i,soci｜株主に配当を支払う

https://kotobank.jp/word/割勘-665746#:~:text=わり‐かん〖割（り）勘〗