English Explanatory Dictionary

sliver

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. A long piece cut or rent off; a sharp, slender fragment.
  2. Specifically, a splinter caught under the skin.
  3. A strand, or slender roll, of cotton or other fiber in a loose, untwisted state, produced by a carding machine and ready for the roving or slubbing which precedes spinning.
  4. Bait made of pieces of small fish.
  5. A narrow high-rise apartment building.
  6. A small amount of something; a drop in the bucket; a shred.
verb
  1. To cut or divide into long, thin pieces, or into very small pieces; to cut or rend lengthwise; to slit.

Pronunciation

/ˈslɪv.ə(ɹ)/ /ˈslɪv.ɚ/ en-us-sliver.ogg en-au-sliver.ogg

Word forms

sliver slivers slivering slivered

Etymology

From Middle English slivere, sliver from Middle English sliven (“to cut, cleave, split”), from Old English slīfan (as in tōslīfan (“to split, split up”)).

Synonyms

shard slice splinter spelk spill bit ounce ace atom atomy aught bissel crumb glimpse dab damn dash diddly glint dot spatter drop dusting fleck glimmer hint flip flyspeck grain halfpennyworth inch iota jot lick mite modicum molecule morceau morsel mote ooch particle pennyworth piece pinch relish scantling semblance scent scintilla scooch scrap scruple shred skerrick skoosh skosh sliver smattering smidge

Related words

chum slither

Derived words

slivercasting sliverlike sliver moon sliverous slivery sliverer tosliver

Translations

Bulgarian: треска Chinese Mandarin: 裂片 Czech: odštěpek Czech: tříska Czech: odřezek Finnish: säle Finnish: tikku French: écharde French: éclat Galician: estela Galician: acha German: Splitter German: kleiner Teil German: kleines Stück German: Spreißel Icelandic: flís Icelandic: flaski Italian: scheggia Italian: frammento Italian: scaglia Italian: spezzone Korean: 조각 Latgalian: skaida Latgalian: ževers Latvian: skaida Māori: hōripi Māori: kōripi Plautdietsch: Spekja Portuguese: lasca Romanian: surcea Romanian: așchie Russian: ще́пка Russian: оско́лок Slovak: trieska Slovak: štiepka Slovene: trska Spanish: astilla Spanish: tira Spanish: esquirla Spanish: rebanadita Swedish: flisa Swedish: speta Swedish: sticka Tocharian B: ṣat Turkish: kıymık Turkish: ince dilim Zazaki: qırm
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