fragment

[noun frag-muh nt; verb frag-muh nt, -ment, frag-ment]

See more synonyms for fragment on Thesaurus.com

noun

a part broken off or detached: scattered fragments of the broken vase.
an isolated, unfinished, or incomplete part: She played a fragment of her latest composition.
an odd piece, bit, or scrap.

verb (used without object)

to collapse or break into fragments; disintegrate: The chair fragmented under his weight.

verb (used with object)

to break (something) into pieces or fragments; cause to disintegrate: Outside influences soon fragmented the Mayan culture.
to divide into fragments; disunify.
Computers. to split a file into smaller parts and store in non-contiguous sectors on a disk, resulting in fragmentation of both the file and available free space on the disk.Compare fragmentation(def 4).

Origin of fragment

1375–1425; late Middle English < Latin fragmentum a broken piece, remnant, equivalent to frag- (stem of frangere to break) + -mentum -ment

Synonyms

See more synonyms for fragment on Thesaurus.com

1–3. See part.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for fragment

Contemporary Examples

The fragment is written in Coptic, not Greek, and is not actually from the Bible, as the title would indicate.
Dismembering History: The Shady Online Trade in Ancient Texts
Candida Moss
November 23, 2014
It really is startling that not one fragment of an airplane that weighed 250 tons has yet turned up.
MH370 Debris Is Lost Forever, Can the Plane Be Found Without It?
Clive Irving
September 7, 2014
A fragment penetrated her shoulder, missing a major artery by an inch.
The Israeli App Red Alert Saves Lives—but It Just Might Drive You Nuts
Itay Hod
July 15, 2014
Day 50 of the search for Flight MH370 has come and gone without one fragment of the Boeing 777 being found.
Why Is Malaysia Hiding Its Report on MH370?
Clive Irving
April 28, 2014
In a subsequent line the fragment refers to a “Mary” and says that she “is worthy.”
The ‘Gospel of Jesus’s Wife’ is Still as Big a Mystery as Ever
Candida Moss
April 13, 2014

Historical Examples

Epos, p. 65, places the fragment in the Finn episode, between ll.
Beowulf
Unknown
The stone-breaker, who had not broken a fragment since we began to converse, then did as follows.
The Uncommercial Traveller
Charles Dickens
It was as if men had been able to preserve a fragment of a sunset.
Alarms and Discursions
G. K. Chesterton
I beg your pardon, my dear "Clarinda," for the fragment scrawl I sent you yesterday.
The Letters of Robert Burns
Robert Burns
"I'm sorry you think——" he began, but did not complete the fragment.
Alice Adams
Booth Tarkington

British Dictionary definitions for fragment

fragment

noun (ˈfræɡmənt)

a piece broken off or detachedfragments of rock
an incomplete piece; portionfragments of a novel
a scrap; morsel; bit

verb (fræɡˈmɛnt) Also US: fragmentize (ˈfræɡmənˌtaɪz)

to break or cause to break into fragments

Word Origin

C15: from Latin fragmentum, from frangere to break

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for fragment

n.

early 15c., from Latin fragmentum "a fragment, remnant," literally "a piece broken off," from root of frangere "to break" (see fraction).

v.

by 1788 (implied in fragmented), from fragment (n.). Related: Fragmenting.

fragment in Medicine

fragment

(frăg′mənt)

A small part broken off or detached.
An incomplete or isolated portion; a bit.

To break or separate into fragments.

fragment

Origin of .css-1fxfie5{font-size:22px;}@media (max-width:768px){.css-1fxfie5{font-size:18px;margin:0 10px 10px 0;word-break:break-all;word-wrap:break-word;-webkit-hyphens:auto;-moz-hyphens:auto;-ms-hyphens:auto;hyphens:auto;line-height:22px;}}fragment

Synonyms

Examples from the Web for fragment

Contemporary Examples

The fragment is written in Coptic, not Greek, and is not actually from the Bible, as the title would indicate.

It really is startling that not one fragment of an airplane that weighed 250 tons has yet turned up.

A fragment penetrated her shoulder, missing a major artery by an inch.

Day 50 of the search for Flight MH370 has come and gone without one fragment of the Boeing 777 being found.

In a subsequent line the fragment refers to a “Mary” and says that she “is worthy.”

Historical Examples

Epos, p. 65, places the fragment in the Finn episode, between ll.

The stone-breaker, who had not broken a fragment since we began to converse, then did as follows.

It was as if men had been able to preserve a fragment of a sunset.

I beg your pardon, my dear "Clarinda," for the fragment scrawl I sent you yesterday.

"I'm sorry you think——" he began, but did not complete the fragment.

fragment

Word Origin

Word Origin and History for fragment

n.

v.

fragment

Origin of fragment