segment
Americannoun
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one of the parts into which something naturally separates or is divided; a division, portion, or section.
a segment of an orange.
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Geometry.
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a part cut off from a figure, especially a circular or spherical one, by a line or plane, as a part of a circular area contained by an arc and its chord or by two parallel lines or planes.
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Also called line segment. a finite section of a line.
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Zoology.
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any of the rings that compose the body of an annelid or arthropod.
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any of the discrete parts of the body of an animal, especially of an arthropod.
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an object, as a machine part, having the form of a segment or sector of a circle.
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Computers.
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a portion of a program, often one that can be loaded and executed independently of other portions.
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a unit of data in a database.
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an arclike support on which the typebars of a typewriter rest when not in use.
verb (used with or without object)
noun
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maths
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a part of a line or curve between two points
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a part of a plane or solid figure cut off by an intersecting line, plane, or planes, esp one between a chord and an arc of a circle
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one of several parts or sections into which an object is divided; portion
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zoology any of the parts into which the body or appendages of an annelid or arthropod are divided
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linguistics a speech sound considered in isolation
verb
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The portion of a line between any two of its points.
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The region bounded by an arc of a circle and the chord that connects the endpoints of the arc.
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The portion of a sphere included between a pair of parallel planes that intersect it or are tangent to it.
Related Words
See part.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of segment
First recorded in 1560–70; from Latin segmentum, equivalent to sec(āre) “to cut” + -mentum -ment
Explanation
A segment is one of several pieces that together create a whole. You could offer a segment of your orange to your girlfriend as a Valentine's Day gift. She’ll probably enjoy the orange, but she may break up with you. Lots of things can have segments. You can talk about a segment of a talk show, a segment of a sphere, or the segment of students in your high school who want to join the Drama Club — the ones singing and dancing in the cafeteria every day. You can also use segment as a verb: when you chop down that oak tree in your front yard, you have to segment the trunk into smaller pieces for firewood.
Vocabulary lists containing segment
Hatchet
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"Genes: All in the Family" and "How to See DNA"
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Cormac McCarthy's "The Road"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
AI is expected to reduce design cycle times and costs for GE Aerospace, with its defense segment projected to reach $13 billion in sales by 2026.
From Barron's • May 19, 2026
“These endorsements give Bass some credibility among a segment of the electorate that might not have necessarily been for her,” he added.
From Los Angeles Times • May 19, 2026
But behind this is the industrial health of China — in that any sign of flagging activity in the country’s industrial segment could reverse the scarcity sentiment.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 19, 2026
The company said it expects its overall data-center segment to become its largest business.
From MarketWatch • May 18, 2026
The fourth and final segment of the “Story in Development” was a live interview with the chief of police in Piedras Negras.
From "Summer of the Mariposas" by Guadalupe García McCall
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
