shatter
[shat-er]
- to break (something) into pieces, as by a blow.
- to damage, as by breaking or crushing: ships shattered by storms.
- to impair or destroy (health, nerves, etc.): The incident shattered his composure.
- to weaken, destroy, or refute (ideas, opinions, etc.): He wanted to shatter her illusions.
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- to be broken into fragments or become weak or insubstantial.
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- Usually shatters. fragments made by shattering.
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Origin of shatter
Synonyms
See more synonyms for shatter on Thesaurus.com1. shiver, split, crack.
Synonym study
1. See break.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for shattered
Contemporary Examples
Shattered by the verdict, I understood our country to be in a dismal state.
Maya Angelou Knew How To Inspire As A Writer, Teacher, and Great Human BeingJoshua DuBois
May 28, 2014
Shattered completely, she crumbled toward the exit and disappeared.
There will be a lot of “This Is How We Live Now” and “Shattered Innocence” in the weeks to come.
Shattered glass from a row of blown-out windows crunched beneath her feet.
Shattered pieces of glass and yellow police tape surrounded the spot.
Historical Examples
Any cold and cruel dawn may show it, Shattered, desecrated, overthrown.
Legends and Lyrics: Second SeriesAdelaide Anne Procter
Shattered, humiliated, sullen, the horse wheeled and returned.
Campaigns of a Non-Combatant,George Alfred Townsend
Shattered rock was thick on the floor, and they skidded and tumbled over it.
Planet of the DamnedHarry Harrison
Shattered also was the fair shape that held the spirit of Stella.
Stella FregeliusH. Rider Haggard
Shattered by the scorn of the Puritans, the stage had not dared to raise its arm for a blow.
The English StageAugustin Filon
shattered
- broken into many small pieces
- impaired or destroyed
- dumbfounded or thoroughly upset
- informal tired out or exhausted
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shatter
- to break or be broken into many small pieces
- (tr) to impair or destroyhis nerves were shattered by the torture
- (tr) to dumbfound or thoroughly upsetshe was shattered by the news
- (tr) informal to cause to be tired out or exhausted
- an obsolete word for scatter
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- (usually plural) obsolete, or dialect a fragment
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Word Origin
C12: perhaps obscurely related to scatter
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 shattered
shatter
v.
early 14c., transitive, probably a variant of Middle English scateren (see scatter (v.)). Cf. Old Dutch schetteren Low German schateren. Formations such as scatter-brained had parallel forms in shatter-brained, etc. Intransitive sense from 1560s. Related: Shattered; shattering. Carlyle (1841) used shatterment. Shatters "fragments" is from 1630s.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper