splint

[ splint ]

/ splɪnt /

Save This Word!

See synonyms for splint on Thesaurus.com

noun

a thin piece of wood or other rigid material used to immobilize a fractured or dislocated bone, or to maintain any part of the body in a fixed position.

one of a number of thin strips of wood woven together to make a chair seat, basket, etc.

Veterinary Medicine. an exostosis or bony enlargement of a splint bone of a horse or a related animal.

Armor.

any of a number of narrow plates or lames joined with rivets or a backing to form a piece of armor.
a partial vambrace protecting only the outer part of the arm.

British Dialect. a splinter of wood or stone.

verb (used with object)

to secure, hold in position, or support by means of a splint or splints, as a fractured bone.

to support as if with splints.

QUIZ

CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?

There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?

Question 1 of 7

Which sentence is correct?

His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of splint

1275–1325; Middle English <Middle Dutch or Middle Low German splinte;cf. splinter

OTHER WORDS FROM splint

splintlike, adjectiveun·splint·ed, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use splint in a sentence

He spent 10 months in a tuberculosis sanatorium with his leg immobilized in a splint, but a cause for his knee ailment was never determined.
David Prowse, English actor and weightlifter who embodied Darth Vader, dies at 85|Louie Estrada|November 29, 2020|Washington Post
Additionally, they help prevent pain from runner’s knee, shin splints, and plantar fasciitis.
Gift Guide: What you need to work(out) from home|Rachel King|November 2, 2020|Fortune
Both were cases of gangrene of the leg, the result of tight splinting by potters.
Castes and Tribes of Southern India|Edgar Thurston
Displacement and crepitus are prevented by the splinting action of the ligaments.
Manual of Surgery Volume Second: Extremities--Head--Neck. Sixth Edition.|Alexander Miles

In transverse fractures the position may be maintained by a simple ferrule of poroplastic or Gooch-splinting.
Manual of Surgery Volume Second: Extremities--Head--Neck. Sixth Edition.|Alexander Miles
After splinting, keep the injured arm or leg a little higher than the rest of the patient's body.
In Time Of Emergency|Department of Defense
Immobilization—Systemic immobilization is effected by body rest and locally by splinting the bitten area.
Natural History of Cottonmouth Moccasin, Agkistrodon piscovorus (Reptilia)|Ray D. Burkett

British Dictionary definitions for splint

splint

/ (splɪnt) /

noun

a rigid support for restricting movement of an injured part, esp a broken bone

a thin sliver of wood, esp one that is used to light cigars, a fire, etc

a thin strip of wood woven with others to form a chair seat, basket, etc

vet science inflammation of the small metatarsal or metacarpal bones along the side of the cannon bone of a horse

one of the overlapping metal plates used in armour after about 1330

another word for splinter

verb

to apply a splint to (a broken arm, etc)

Derived forms of splint

splintlike, adjective

Word Origin for splint

C13: from Middle Low German splinte; related to Middle Dutch splinte splint, Old High German spaltan to split

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

splint

Origin of splint

OTHER WORDS FROM splint

Words related to splint

How to use splint in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for splint

Derived forms of splint

Word Origin for splint