Definition

1. Noun (plural):
   • Small, sharp, thin pieces of wood, glass, metal, or other hard material that have broken off from a larger piece. This is the primary meaning, referring to the physical fragments themselves.
   • The act or result of breaking into such small, sharp fragments. This meaning refers to the state or material composed of these fragments.

Usage

• The noun "splinters" is almost always used in its plural form to describe multiple fragments.
• It is commonly used with verbs like , , , , and .
• It often follows prepositions like (e.g., splinters of wood) or (e.g., a splinter in my finger).

Examples

• Noun:
  • I got splinters in my hand from the old wooden railing.
  • The safety glass broke into tiny, harmless splinters.
  • He carefully removed the splinters of glass from the floor.

Advanced Usage

• "To be beaten/broken/smashed to splinters": An idiom meaning to be completely shattered or destroyed into small fragments.
  • The old chair fell apart and was beaten to splinters.
• Used metaphorically to describe something dividing into many conflicting parts.
  • The political party fractured into splinters.

Variants and Related Words

• Splinter (noun): The singular form, referring to one such fragment.
  • I have a splinter in my thumb.
• Splinter (verb): To break or cause to break into small, sharp fragments.
  • The impact caused the wood to splinter.
• Splintery (adjective): Likely to splinter or full of splinters.
  • The splintery old bench was unsafe to sit on.

Synonyms

• Shards: Often used for glass or pottery.
• Slivers: Very thin, small splinters.
• Fragments: More general term for broken pieces.
• Shivers (archaic/poetic): Splinters or fragments.

Related Phrases

• Splinter group: A small organization that has broken away from a larger one, typically due to disagreement.
  • A splinter group left the main union to form their own.

Noun

1. wood in small pieces or splinters
   • the vessel was beaten to matchwood on the rocks