hive off

Likely from the way a swarm of bees splits off from one hive to establish a second hive. (This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

hive off (third-person singular simple present hives off, present participle hiving off, simple past and past participle hived off)

1. (intransitive) To separate from a larger group.
   • 1964 May, “News and Comment: Minister hamstrings BR workshops”, in Modern Railways, page 291:

     If the Government believes that part of the railways' salvation is to be found in ridding them of extraneous concerns, it should have had the courage either to close the railway works down as quickly as possible, or to hive them off as an entirely separate concern, [...].

   • 2021 June 16, “Network News: Waterloo & City reopens ahead of schedule”, in RAIL, number 933, page 24:

     Completed by the London & Southern [sic: South] Western Railway in 1898, the W&C was part of British Rail until hived off in 1994. It is physically isolated from the rest of the Underground.

   Synonyms: branch off, fork off, split off

2. (transitive) To segregate; to remove from a parent entity.
   • 2009 March 25, Felicity Williams and Fleur Leyden, “Commodities rally in big price rout”, in Herald Sun‎:

     The plan involves banks hiving off bad assets and investors buying them at a discount on hopes of turning a profit over time.