shatter
Americanverb (used with object)
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to break (something) into pieces, as by a blow.
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to damage, as by breaking or crushing.
ships shattered by storms.
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to impair or destroy (health, nerves, etc.).
The incident shattered his composure.
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to weaken, destroy, or refute (ideas, opinions, etc.).
He wanted to shatter her illusions.
verb (used without object)
noun
verb
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to break or be broken into many small pieces
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(tr) to impair or destroy
his nerves were shattered by the torture
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(tr) to dumbfound or thoroughly upset
she was shattered by the news
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informal (tr) to cause to be tired out or exhausted
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an obsolete word for scatter
noun
Related Words
See break.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of shatter
1300–50; Middle English schateren < ?; cf. scatter
Explanation
When you shatter something, you smash it or break it into small bits. If your sister hits a baseball directly into the kitchen window, the window will shatter — and your sister will be in big trouble. When you drop something fragile, it will probably shatter—lightbulbs, teacups, mirrors, and windows all shatter fairly easily. Things can also shatter in a less literal way, when it just feels like they're breaking apart violently. If your best friend ignores you all day, your heart shatters; and if you stumble and fall on your way up to a podium to give a speech, your confidence may shatter.
Vocabulary lists containing shatter
Lesson 11
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Towers Falling
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Blasted to Smithereens: Synonyms for "Break"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“This is an opportunity to spark that interest. Shatter that monolith. Go into new areas, new sports, and not only participate but excel at it.”
From Seattle Times • Feb. 16, 2023
Shatter Remastered is an updated take of the hit brick-breaking game that first released on PS3 in 2009.
From The Verge • Mar. 22, 2022
When Shatter Special No. 1, published by First Comics, was released in 1985, its cover proclaimed it “the first computerized comic!”
From New York Times • Nov. 13, 2019
The secret government organization, tasked with tracking extraterrestrials, gets hoodwinked by the evil Decepticons Shatter and Dropkick to find Bumblebee.
From Washington Times • Apr. 3, 2019
Hearts are not made Of glass Or bone Or any material that could Splinter Or Fragment Or Shatter.
From "The Sun Is Also a Star" by Nicola Yoon
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
