French

Verb

départager

1. (transitive) to shift the balance between two parties of, or break the tie between, decide between

   Le maire, par son vote, a départagé le conseil municipal.‎

   The mayor, with his vote, broke the tie between the council members.

   Il n’y a jamais lieu, en matière criminelle, à départager les juges, l’avis le plus doux étant toujours celui qui prévaut.‎

   There is never reason, in criminal matters, to decide between (the rulings of) the judges, the softest opinion always being the one that prevails.

2. (transitive) to divide, separate
3. (transitive) to isolate, separate, determine
4. (transitive) to distinguish, differentiate, or decide between
5. (reflexive, sports) to find a winner, break a (or the) tie

   Les deux équipes n'ont pas pu se départager. Score final : 28 à 28.‎

   The two teams came to a stalemate. Final score: 28-28.

Conjugation

This is a regular -er verb, but the stem is written départage- before endings that begin with -a- or -o- (to indicate that the -g- is a “soft” /ʒ/ and not a “hard” /ɡ/). This spelling-change occurs in all verbs in -ger, such as neiger and manger.