splinter

[ splin-ter ]
/ ˈsplɪn tər /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR splinter ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a small, thin, sharp piece of wood, bone, or the like, split or broken off from the main body.
splinter group.

verb (used with object)

verb (used without object)

to be split or broken into splinters.
to break off in splinters.

Origin of splinter

1350–1400; Middle English < Middle Dutch or Middle Low German; cf. splint

OTHER WORDS FROM splinter

splin·ter·less, adjective splin·ter·y, adjective un·splin·tered, adjective

Words nearby splinter

splicing, spliff, spline, splint, splint bone, splinter, splinter group, splintery, split, split brain, split cane

Words related to splinter

sliver, rive, smash, disintegrate, shatter, split, fracture, fragment, chip, needle, flake, wood, bit, paring, shaving, shiver, burst, pash

Example sentences from the Web for splinter

British Dictionary definitions for splinter

splinter
/ (ˈsplɪntə) /

noun

a very small sharp piece of wood, glass, metal, etc, characteristically long and thin, broken off from a whole
a metal fragment, from the container of a shell, bomb, etc, thrown out during an explosion

verb

to reduce or be reduced to sharp fragments; shatter
to break or be broken off in small sharp fragments

Word Origin for splinter

C14: from Middle Dutch splinter; see splint