spall

[spawl]

noun

a chip or splinter, as of stone or ore.

verb (used with object)

to break into smaller pieces, as ore; split or chip.

verb (used without object)

to break or split off in chips or bits.

Origin of spall

1750–60; origin uncertain; compare late Middle English spalle a chip

Related formsspall·er, nounnon·spall·ing, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for spall

Contemporary Examples of spall

Spall says that, faced with the contradictions in the research, they created an amalgam of them.
Why Can’t Movies Capture Genius?
Clive Irving
December 14, 2014
Tim [Spall] could well be nominated and not win because Hollywood films tend to win.
Mike Leigh Is the Master Filmmaker Who Hates Hollywood
Nico Hines
October 14, 2014
Spall spent two years training to paint in preparation for the role.
Mike Leigh Is the Master Filmmaker Who Hates Hollywood
Nico Hines
October 14, 2014
Spall plays him brilliantly as a grumbling, grunting beast of a man whose sensitivity and kindness emerges slowly.
Mike Leigh Is the Master Filmmaker Who Hates Hollywood
Nico Hines
October 14, 2014
Spall was rewarded for his hard work with the best actor prize at the Cannes Film Festival.
Mike Leigh Is the Master Filmmaker Who Hates Hollywood
Nico Hines
October 14, 2014

British Dictionary definitions for spall

spall

noun

a splinter or chip of ore, rock, or stone

verb

to split or cause to split into such fragments

Word Origin for spall

C15: of unknown origin

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 spall

"chip of stone," mid-15c., from Middle English verb spald "to split open" (early 14c.), from or related to Middle Dutch spalden, Middle Low German spalden, cognate with Old High German spaltan "to split" (see spill (v.)).