splinter

See also: Splinter

English

WOTD – 1 February 2009

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈsplɪntə(ɹ)/
• (US) IPA^(key): /ˈsplɪntɚ/, [ˈsplɪɾ̃ɚ]
• (Southern American English) IPA^(key): /ˈsplɪnɚ/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Audio (AU)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɪntə(ɹ)

Etymology 1

From Middle English splinter, from Middle Dutch splinter, equivalent to splint +‎ -er.

Noun

splinter (plural splinters)

1. A long, sharp fragment of material, often wood.
   1. A small such fragment that gets embedded in the flesh.
2. A group that formed by splitting off from a larger membership.
3. (bridge) A double-jump bid which indicates shortage in the bid suit.

Synonyms

• (long sharp fragment): shard, spelk, spill.
• (group formed by splitting): faction, splinter group.

Translations

fragment of material

• Arabic: شَظِيَّة‎ (ar) f (šaẓiyya)
• Armenian: տաշեղ (hy) (tašeł)
• Aromanian: ashclji, aschlje
• Azerbaijani: tilişkə (az)
• Basque: ezpal
• Belarusian: ска́бка f (skábka), стрэ́мка f (strémka)
• Bulgarian: отло́мък (bg) m (otlómǎk), треска́ (bg) f (treská)
• Catalan: estella (ca)
• Cherokee: ᎤᏢᏓᎸᏓ (utlvdalvda)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 碎片 (zh) (suìpiàn), 刺 (zh) (cì)

• Czech: tříska (cs) f, úlomek (cs) m, odštěpek m
• Dalmatian: sčela f
• Danish: splint c
• Dutch: splinter (nl) m
• Esperanto: splito
• Estonian: pind (et), kild (et)
• Finnish: säle (fi) (wood), sirpale (fi), pirstale (fi)
• French: éclat (fr) m, esquille (fr) f, écharde (fr) f
• Friulian: sclese f, scae
• Galician: estela (gl) f, racha f, acha (gl) f, pitela f, cavaco m, guizo f, lerca f, escádea f, trisca f, turraca f, lircha f, troupecelo m
• Georgian: ხიწვი (xic̣vi), ხიჭვი (xič̣vi)
• German: Splitter (de) m, Splinter m, Schiefer (de) m, Spreißel (de) m
• Greek: σκλήθρα (el) f (sklíthra), θραύσμα (el) n (thráfsma), (wood) ακίδα (el) f (akída)

  Ancient: σχινδάλαμος m (skhindálamos)

• Hebrew: קֵיסָם‎ (he) m (kesám), שְׁבָב‎ (he) m (shvav)
• Hindi: please add this translation if you can
• Hungarian: forgács (hu), szálka (hu)
• Irish: scealp f, scealpóg f
• Italian: scheggia (it) f
• Japanese: 破片 (ja) (はへん, hahen), 刺 (ja) (とげ, toge)
• Khmer: ចំរាស (cɑmriəh)
• Korean: 조각 (ko) (jogak), 지저깨비 (jijeokkaebi)
• Lao: ສ້ຽນ (sīan)
• Latin: assula f, schidia f
• Latvian: skaida f, skabarga f
• Lithuanian: drožlė f, rakštis f
• Macedonian: спица f (spica), деланка f (delanka)
• Maori: koi (mi)
• Norman: êclyi m
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: flis m or f

• Occitan: astèla f, estèla (oc) f, ascla (oc) f
• Old English: speld n
• Persian: تریشه‎ (fa) (teriše)
• Plautdietsch: Spekja m
• Polish: odłamek (pl) m, drzazga (pl) f
• Portuguese: farpa (pt) f
• Romanian: așchie (ro) f
• Russian: ще́пка (ru) f (ščépka), зано́за (ru) f (zanóza) (stuck in a body)
• Sardinian: alcia f, ascia f, ascra, astua f, astula f, schedra f, schelda f
• Scots: spail, pran
• Scottish Gaelic: spealg f
• Slovak: trieska f, štiepka f
• Slovene: trska (sl) f
• Spanish: (wood) astilla (es) f, (bone or metal) esquirla f
• Swedish: flisa (sv) c, sticka (sv) c
• Tagalog: subyang
• Tajik: параха (paraxa)
• Thai: เสี้ยน (th) (sîian)
• Turkish: kıymık (tr)
• Ukrainian: ска́бка f (skábka), ска́лка f (skálka)
• Venetian: sgrexénda f, s-cexa (vec) f
• Walloon: schete (wa) f

group

• Czech: frakce (cs) f
• Dutch: splintergroep
• Finnish: sirpaleryhmä
• French: faction (fr) f
• Galician: bandaría f, bando m, faución f
• German: Splittergruppe (de) f
• Italian: fazione (it)
• Lithuanian: trupinys m
• Polish: odłam (pl) m
• Portuguese: facção (pt) f
• Romanian: factiune f, schisma f
• Russian: отщепе́нцы (ru) m pl (otščepéncy)
• Slovak: frakcia
• Swedish: avknoppning c, utbrytning c, utbrytargrupp c

Etymology 2

From the noun splinter.

Verb

splinter (third-person singular simple present splinters, present participle splintering, simple past and past participle splintered)

1. (intransitive) To come apart into long sharp fragments.

   The tall tree splintered during the storm.

2. (transitive) To cause to break apart into long sharp fragments.

   His third kick splintered the door.

   • 1855–1858, William H[ickling] Prescott, History of the Reign of Philip the Second, King of Spain, volume (please specify |volume=I to III), Boston, Mass.: Phillips, Sampson, and Company, →OCLC:

     After splintering their lances, they wheeled about, and […] abandoned the field to the enemy.

3. (figuratively, of a group) To break, or cause to break, into factions.

   The government splintered when the coalition members could not agree.

   The unpopular new policies splintered the company.

4. (transitive) To fasten or confine with splinters, or splints, as a broken limb.
   • 1659, Matthew Wren, Monarchy Asserted Or The State of Monarchicall & Popular Government:

     it will be very hard for Me to Splinter up the broken confuséd Pieces of it.

Related terms

• splint
• splinter up

Translations

to come apart into splinters

• Bulgarian: разцепвам се (razcepvam se)
• Czech: štěpit se
• Dutch: versplinteren (nl), splinteren (nl)
• Finnish: pirstoutua (fi), mennä säpäleiksi
• Galician: estelar. espitallar, lascar, lasquear
• German: zersplittern (de)
• Italian: scheggiarsi (it)
• Portuguese: esfarpar
• Russian: расщепляться (ru) (rasščepljatʹsja), раскалываться (ru) (raskalyvatʹsja)
• Scottish Gaelic: spealg
• Slovak: štiepiť sa, rozštiepiť sa
• Spanish: astillar (es)

to cause to break apart into splinters

• Bulgarian: цепя (bg) (cepja), разцепвам (bg) (razcepvam)
• Czech: štípat
• Dutch: versplinteren (nl)
• Finnish: pirstoa, lyödä säpäleiksi, panna päreiksi
• Galician: rachar, estelar. espitallar, lascar, lasquear
• German: zersplittern (de)
• Italian: scheggiare (it)
• Portuguese: esfarpar
• Russian: расщеплять (ru) (rasščepljatʹ), раскалывать (ru) (raskalyvatʹ)
• Scottish Gaelic: spealg
• Slovak: štiepať, rozštiepať, rozbiť, rozbíjať, sekať (sk), rozsekať
• Spanish: astillar (es)

to break or cause to break into factions

• Bulgarian: разцепвам (bg) (razcepvam)
• Czech: odštěpit se (to break)
• Finnish: hajota (fi) (to break); hajottaa (fi) (to cause to break)
• Italian: fare a pezzi, dividere (it)
• Slovak: rozdeliť, rozdeliť sa, štiepiť, rozštiepiť, štiepiť sa, rozštiepiť sa

to fasten or confine with splints

• Bulgarian: шинирам (šiniram)
• Finnish: lastoittaa (fi)

Dutch

Etymology

From Middle Dutch splinter.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈsplɪn.tər/

• Audio

  (file)

• Hyphenation: splin‧ter
• Rhymes: -ɪntər

Noun

splinter m (plural splinters, diminutive splintertje n)

1. splinter (long, sharp fragment of material)

Derived terms

• splinterpartij

Descendants

• Negerhollands: splinter
• → Papiamentu: spleenter (dated)