sliver

American  

[sliv-er] / ˈslɪv ər /

noun

• slivers
  plural

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.

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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 British  

/ ˈslɪvə /

noun

1. a thin piece that is cut or broken off lengthwise; splinter

2. a loose strand or fibre obtained by carding

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verb

1. to divide or be divided into splinters; split

2. (tr) to form (wool, etc) into slivers

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• sliver-like
  adjective
• sliverlike
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• slivers
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of sliver

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

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Explanation

A very thin slice or bit of something is a sliver. A sliver of hope is better than a sliver of doubt, but having a sliver of wood in your foot is the worst. That’s called a splinter, and it hurts! You'll want to watch out for slivers of glass if you break a drinking glass in the sink, and machinists have to wear special protective goggles to guard against flying slivers of metal. If you just want a bite of dessert, you can ask for just a sliver of cheesecake. Sliver is also a verb, meaning "splinter," or "cut into thin pieces." It comes from a verb that's now obsolete, sliven, "to split."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

sliver slivers

A sliver of meadow and trees on the edge of Yosemite National Park has become an unlikely battleground over whether development is allowed in national parks.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 10, 2026

Three weeks is only a sliver of the NFL season; a backsliding team has plenty of time to correct its course.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 3, 2026

“We understand trading cards represents a small sliver of the business” for Target, “likely in the 1% to 2% range of total revenue,” the Mizuho analysts, led by David Bellinger, said in their note.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 17, 2026

Tsudik says ambiguous squares, such as those containing just a sliver of a bicycle or traffic light, are judged in part by how other people have labeled the same image.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026

He knew that, in order to protect his surviving daughter from the radiation the plant might release, he had to abandon the faint sliver of hope that one of those swept away could have survived.

From "Meltdown" by Deirdre Langeland

After a long run, nothing was better than Diet Coke straight from the freezer, the soda feathered with slivers of ice.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026

Thin-sliced celery or carrots, fennel shaved translucent, a few slivers of red onion or scallions, even cucumbers if you’re craving something clean and cold.

From Salon ● Dec. 16, 2025

It also sees its role of defending Thailand's territorial claims as a sacred one, even though this conflict is about tiny slivers of mostly unpopulated land.

From BBC ● Dec. 10, 2025

Thin slivers of pig’s ears came with long-cooked pork belly.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 25, 2025

Jesper’s clothes were covered in tiny slivers and shavings of steel.

From "Six of Crows" by Leigh Bardugo

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Related Words

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

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