1. to separate or disconnect at a joint; to disjoint
Usage: transitive verb; formal or technical
2. to break down into separate parts or elements; to disassemble
Usage: transitive verb; figurative or abstract use

Examples

• The surgeon carefully disarticulates the bones to examine the joint damage.
• The skeleton disarticulates naturally over time as the ligaments decay.
• The analysis disarticulates the complex argument into its component parts.
• When the fossil was excavated, the vertebrae had already disarticulated.
• The researcher disarticulates the theory to identify its underlying assumptions.