demarcation

or de·mar·ka·tion

[ dee-mahr-key-shuhn ]
See synonyms for demarcation on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. the determining and marking off of the boundaries of something.

  2. separation by distinct boundaries: line of demarcation.

Origin of demarcation

1
1720–30; Latinization of Spanish demarcación (in linea de demarcación line of demarcation, dividing the world between Spain and Portugal) derivative of demarcar to mark out the bounds of, equivalent to de-de- + marcar<Italian marcare<Germanic; see mark1, -ation

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use demarcation in a sentence

  • He could see no line of demarkation where it ended at the top.

    The Fire People | Ray Cummings
  • Philologic study of continental terms displays no such marked emphasis upon the idea of property and demarkation lines.

    Milton's England | Lucia Ames Mead
  • But the line of demarkation between the educated and the half-educated is just as clear in New York as in London.

  • In the neighborhood of this camp I carefully noted the lines of demarkation between the forested and deforested regions.

    Travels in Alaska | John Muir
  • A line of demarkation in such a case is distinctly drawn between the diseased and the healthy flesh.

    The Kentuckian in New-York, Volume I (of 2) | William Alexander Caruthers

British Dictionary definitions for demarcation

demarcation

demarkation

/ (ˌdiːmɑːˈkeɪʃən) /


noun
  1. the act of establishing limits or boundaries

  2. a limit or boundary

    • a strict separation of the kinds of work performed by members of different trade unions

    • (as modifier): demarcation dispute

  1. separation or distinction (often in the phrase line of demarcation)

Origin of demarcation

1
C18: Latinized version of Spanish demarcación, from demarcar to appoint the boundaries of, from marcar to mark, from Italian marcare, of Germanic origin; see mark 1

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012