sliver

[ sliv-er ]

noun

1. a small, slender, often sharp piece, as of wood or glass, split, broken, or cut off, usually lengthwise or with the grain; splinter.
2. any small, narrow piece or portion:

   A sliver of sky was visible.

3. a strand of loose, untwisted fibers produced in carding.

verb (used with object)

1. to split or cut off (a sliver) or to split or cut into slivers:

   to sliver a log into kindling.

2. to form (textile fibers) into slivers.

verb (used without object)

1. to split.

sliver

/ ˈslɪvə /

noun

1. a thin piece that is cut or broken off lengthwise; splinter
2. a loose strand or fibre obtained by carding

verb

1. to divide or be divided into splinters; split
2. tr to form (wool, etc) into slivers

Derived Forms

• ˈsliver-ˌlike, adjective

Other Words From

• sliver·like adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of sliver¹

1325–75; Middle English slivere (noun), derivative of sliven to split, Old English -slīfan (in tōslīfan to split up

Word History and Origins

Origin of sliver¹

C14: from sliven to split

Example Sentences

The projects Metro is targeting this time around are a sliver of a nearly $23 billion budget for capital projects that stretches 10 years.

From Washington Post

There’s only been like a sliver, like two, maybe, that have taken any money from Amazon to spend in the retail media space.

From Digiday

Experts believe the federal tally of nearly 500 variant cases across 32 states — including the strains first found in the United Kingdom, South Africa and Brazil — is a sliver of the real picture.

From Washington Post

“So we are excited to have a sliver of live performance and try to provide that source of inspiration that will help remind people that we are all here, we’re all Americans, we are all working to get through this,” he said.

From Washington Post

Get rid of soap slivers, nearly empty bottles and dried up nail polish.

From Washington Post

There was some small sliver of hope that Democrats could regain some lost ground in 2016 with Hillary Clinton on the ballot.

From The Daily Beast

The governor with at least a tiny sliver of a heart is gone.

From The Daily Beast

And if he can stabilize this sliver of the country, it could prevent another devastating war.

From The Daily Beast

Leaving the OR that night, I looked up the clear sky, at the flocks of white seagulls and a sliver of crescent moon.

From The Daily Beast

Despite name ID and fluent Spanish (there was a sizable Hispanic population in the area), he lost by a sliver.

From The Daily Beast

I took a look around, trying to find a sliver of light that would reveal the part of the building in which the men were hiding.

From Project Gutenberg

There was Old Slade, from over on the bluff opposite, slyly cutting a sliver of salt fish from one in the bale upon which he sat.

From Project Gutenberg

I have heard noises something like them in sawmills when the circular saw happened to strike a sliver.

From Project Gutenberg

Once it raised its head and a sliver of flesh shook from its teeth before the face dropped again to devour.

From Project Gutenberg

In his hand he had a stone knife—you know, a thin, sharp sliver of some obsidian-like stuff same as they make arrow-heads out of.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• flake
• fragment
• shaving
• shred
• slice
• snippet