separation
noun
ˌsepəˈreɪʃn 
ˌsepəˈreɪʃn 
1 [uncountable, singular] the act of separating people or things; the state of being separateseparation (from somebody/something) the state's eventual separation from the federationseparation (between A and B) the need for a clear separation between Church and State2 [countable] a period of time that people spend apart from each otherThey were reunited after a separation of more than 20 years.Prolonged separations of this kind are damaging to very young children.3 [countable] a decision that a husband and wife make to live apart while they are still legally marrieda legal separationSixty per cent of all marital separations occur before the tenth year of marriage. compare divorce