splitting

American  

[split-ing] / ˈsplɪt ɪŋ /

adjective

1. being split or causing something to split.

2. violent or severe, as a headache.

3. very fast or rapid.

---

noun

1. Usually splittings. a part or fragment that has been split off from something.

   Some cavemen made their smaller tools from the splittings of stone.

splitting British  

/ ˈsplɪtɪŋ /

adjective

1. (of a headache) intolerably painful; acute

2. (of the head) assailed by an overpowering unbearable pain

---

noun

1. psychoanal the Freudian defence mechanism in which an object or idea (or, alternatively, the ego) is separated into two or more parts in order to remove its threatening meaning

Other Word Forms

• antisplitting
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of splitting

First recorded in 1585–95; split + -ing ², -ing ¹

Example Sentences

Splitting into two groups, the police ran up either side of the building seeking to catch dealers in the stairwells.

From BBC • Dec. 11, 2025

Traditionally, developers need luck or a large marketing budget, says Janzen Madsen, head of Roblox studio Splitting Point, which bought a share of Grow a Garden from its anonymous creator.

From Barron's • Nov. 26, 2025

Splitting up the stuff is a big problem for most people.

From MarketWatch • Nov. 21, 2025

Splitting franchise films into two parts made sense for young adult books like “Harry Potter,” “Twilight” and “The Hunger Games,” given that each series boasted thicker tomes with each subsequent release.

From Salon • Nov. 21, 2025

“Well,” said Slughorn uncomfortably, “you must understand that the soul is supposed to remain intact and whole. Splitting it is an act of violation, it is against nature.”

From "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" by J.K. Rowling

Related Words

• breakdown
• disintegration
• dissolution
• divorce
• separation
• split
• termination