indivisible
part of speech
adjective (indivisible)
meaning for a pupil
1) Not able to be divided or separated into parts. tree →
2) (maths) Not able to be divided exactly by a certain number without a remainder: 7 is indivisible by 2. tree →
3) (formal) So closely joined that they act as one: «one nation… indivisible» in the US Pledge of Allegiance. tree →
sense in the lessons
In maths lessons, «indivisible by» means there is a remainder: 9 is indivisible by 4. A prime number is indivisible by any number except 1 and itself. In US schools children say «one nation under God, indivisible…» in the Pledge of Allegiance. In science, atoms were once thought indivisible. Phrases: indivisible by, one and indivisible.
examples
- Seven is indivisible by two; there is always one left over. tree →
- A prime number is indivisible except by one and itself. tree →
- The friends were indivisible; you never saw one without the other. tree →
- People once thought atoms were indivisible, but they have smaller parts. tree →
- «One nation, indivisible» is a line from the US Pledge of Allegiance. tree →
- Is 15 indivisible by 4? Yes, because 15 ÷ 4 leaves a remainder of 3. tree →
note
Opposite: «divisible». Maths: «a is indivisible by b» = a ÷ b leaves a remainder. Careful: everything can be divided as a fraction (7 ÷ 2 = 3.5); «indivisible» in maths means not into whole numbers exactly.
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «indivisible» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.