Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for August 14, 2023 is: asunder \uh-SUN-der\ adverb or adjective

Asunder is most often used as an adverb—often with a verb such as tear or pull—to mean "apart" or "into pieces." It is more rarely used as an adjective meaning "apart from each other," as in "he stood with his legs wide asunder."

// The park was torn asunder by yesterday's [microburst](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/microburst), and many of its trails have been blocked by fallen trees.

[See the entry >](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/asunder)

Examples:

"House of the Dragon chronicles the events leading up to and during the Dance of the Dragons, the name given by the poets of Westeros to a gruesome civil war that tore House Targaryen asunder." — Nick Romano, EW.com, 11 Aug. 2022

Did you know?

To get to the root of today’s word, it helps to take it apart and focus on the sunder. You see, asunder comes from the verb [sunder](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sunder), which means "to break apart" or "to become parted, disunited, or severed." Both words come from the Old English word sundor, meaning "apart." The [adverbial](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/adverbial) "into parts" sense of asunder is often used in the phrase "tear asunder," which can be used both literally (as in "fabric torn asunder") and, more often, figuratively (as in "a community torn asunder by the dispute"). The [adjectival](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/adjectival) "apart from each other" sense can be found in the phrase "poles asunder," used to describe two things that are as vastly far apart as the poles of the Earth.