splinter

American  

[splin-ter] / ˈsplɪn tər /

noun

1. a small, thin, sharp piece of wood, bone, or the like, split or broken off from the main body.

   Synonyms:

   sliver

2. splinter group.

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verb (used with object)

1. to split or break into splinters.

2. to break off (something) in splinters.

3. to split or break (a larger group) into separate factions or independent groups.

4. Obsolete. to secure or support by a splint or splints, as a broken limb.

verb (used without object)

1. to be split or broken into splinters.

2. to break off in splinters.

   Synonyms:

   split, part, separate

splinter British  

/ ˈsplɪntə /

noun

1. a very small sharp piece of wood, glass, metal, etc, characteristically long and thin, broken off from a whole

2. a metal fragment, from the container of a shell, bomb, etc, thrown out during an explosion

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verb

1. to reduce or be reduced to sharp fragments; shatter

2. to break or be broken off in small sharp fragments

Other Word Forms

• splinterless
  adjective
• splintery
  adjective
• unsplintered
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of splinter

1350–1400; Middle English < Middle Dutch or Middle Low German; cf. splint

Explanation

A splinter is a narrow, pointed sliver that breaks off something larger. If you walk barefoot on a wooden floor, dock, or boardwalk, you might get a splinter of wood in your foot. Ouch! We often use the word splinter to refer to tiny shards of wood that lodge under the skin, but a sliver of any hard material — stone, glass, bone, wood, metal — can be called a splinter. When something splinters, it breaks into individual bits. You can also use the word figuratively to describe something that separates in a violent or forceful way, like when a mainstream political party splinters into more or less extreme groups.

Example Sentences

The county’s steps haven’t stopped the chaos: A splinter group from the condo now has elected a new board, which claims to have rightful control over the property.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 1, 2026

But regional cooperation doesn’t need to splinter the world entirely.

From Barron's • Mar. 4, 2026

From hosting streaming events at the Three Sisters pub in the capital, a splinter group has formed and they now attend ice hockey games together.

From BBC • Feb. 17, 2026

Ours is a history in which New York robber barons used the promise of belonging to splinter the poor into factions and manipulate them into fighting among themselves during the Gilded Age.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 24, 2026

He glanced away from the oily green gaze that watched him, and held up before him his staff, that looked now like a splinter, like a twig.

From "A Wizard of Earthsea" by Ursula K. Le Guin

Related Words

• disintegrate
• fracture
• rive
• shatter
• smash
• split