distribute vs divide up

distribute

verb
  • To divide into portions and dispense. 

  • To have employees working remotely from multiple locations. 

  • To supply to retail outlets. 

  • To scatter or spread. 

  • To separate (type which has been used) and return it to the proper boxes in the cases. 

  • To employ (a term) in its whole extent; to take as universal in one premise. 

  • To deliver or pass out. 

  • To classify or separate into categories. 

  • To be distributive. 

  • To apportion (more or less evenly). 

  • To spread (ink) evenly, as upon a roller or a table. 

divide up

verb
  • To divide, particularly into separate shares for distribution. 

How often have the words distribute and divide up occurred in a corpus of books? (source: Google Ngram Viewer )