WordGarden.iosegmentation
B2Pronunciation
UK
- /sˌɛɡməntˈeɪʃən/
US
- /ˌsɛɡmənˈteɪʃən/
Meanings
Noun
the division of something into distinct sections or units
the division of a market or audience into distinct customer groups
the division of digital data, images, memory, or networks into separate segments for processing or control
More meaningsFewer meanings
the biological division of an embryo, body, or structure into repeated segments
the division of speech or text into meaningful language units
Beyond the definition
Imagine a beautiful orange. You can peel it and split it into neat little sections. Segmentation works in a similar way. It is the process of dividing something larger into smaller, more manageable parts or groups, often based on shared features. Marketers use it to place customers into groups with similar needs so they can shape their messages and products more carefully. But it is not just a business word; in biology, it can describe a body or an early embryo being divided into repeated sections, and in technology, it can mean splitting data into parts so it is easier to handle. Think of it as a way to understand something complicated by breaking it into clearer pieces.
Segmentation is the process of dividing a whole into distinct parts or groups, often based on clear criteria. It comes from the Latin segmentum, meaning "a piece cut off." At heart, the idea is simple: a large thing can be easier to understand, study, or manage when you break it into meaningful sections.
You will hear "segmentation" most often in marketing. Companies use market segmentation to identify different groups of customers, often based on things like age, income, habits, or lifestyle. This helps them create more suitable advertising and offer products that better match each group. For example, a clothing company might divide its audience into teenagers, young professionals, and retirees, then design different product lines for each one.
However, segmentation is not limited to business. In biology, it refers to repeated sections in the body of some animals or to stages in early development. In city planning and geography, it can mean dividing an area into neighborhoods or regions with different features and needs. In computing, data, images, or memory may be split into parts so they are easier to process, store, or analyze.
Think about a well-organized library: books are not just thrown onto shelves at random. They are arranged by genre, author, or subject. That makes it easier for people to find what they need. In much the same way, segmentation helps us make sense of complex systems by dividing them into smaller, clearer parts.
So whether you're talking about customers, organisms, cities, or data, segmentation is all about dividing a whole into meaningful parts to better understand and manage it.
Examples
- 1
Marketing
The company used market segmentation to target different groups of customers.
- 2
Audience analysis
The report includes a clear segmentation of the audience by age, location, and spending habits.
- 3
Medical imaging
In medical imaging, segmentation helps doctors measure the size of a tumor more accurately.
- 4
Text processing
The software struggled with word segmentation in languages that do not use spaces.
- Phraseword segmentation
dividing written text into separate words
See also
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Used with (collocations)
- market segmentation
- image segmentation
- customer segmentation
- semantic segmentation
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Forms and spellings
2 forms open this card.
Main spelling
- segmentationnoun
Forms
- segmentationspluralnoun