dichotomy

noun di·chot·o·my \dī-ˈkä-tə-mē also də-\

: a difference between two opposite things : a division into two opposite groups

plural di·chot·o·mies

Full Definition of DICHOTOMY

: a division into two especially mutually exclusive or contradictory groups or entities <the dichotomy between theory and practice>; also : the process or practice of making such a division <dichotomy of the population into two opposed classes>

: the phase of the moon or an inferior planet in which half its disk appears illuminated

a : bifurcation; especially : repeated bifurcation (as of a plant's stem)

b : a system of branching in which the main axis forks repeatedly into two branches

c : branching of an ancestral line into two equal diverging branches

: something with seemingly contradictory qualities <it's a dichotomy, this opulent Ritz-style luxury in a place that fronts on a boat harbor — Jean T. Barrett>

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Examples of DICHOTOMY

The amusing spectacle of the recent presidential vote in Florida should remind us of the persistence of the federal-state dichotomy. —Eugene Genovese, Atlantic, March 2001
At the close of this millennium, the favored dichotomy features a supposed battle called “the science wars.” —Stephen Jay Gould, Science, 14 Jan. 2000
… to insist on its being either symbol or fact is to dwell needlessly on a false dichotomy. —Simon Schama, The Embarrassment of Riches, 1988
… the Inuit concept of their environment was centred around the dichotomy between land and sea. —Ian Hodder, Reading the Past, 1986
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