shard

American  

[shahrd] / ʃɑrd /

Also sherd

noun

1. a fragment, especially of broken earthenware.

2. Zoology.

   1. a scale.

   2. a shell, as of an egg or snail.

3. Entomology. an elytron of a beetle.

---

shard British  

/ ʃɑːd /

noun

1. a broken piece or fragment of a brittle substance, esp of pottery

2. zoology a tough sheath, scale, or shell, esp the elytra of a beetle

---

Etymology

Origin of shard

First recorded before 1000; Middle English; Old English sceard; cognate with Low German, Dutch schaard; akin to shear

Example Sentences

Anxiety punches me and a shard of irritation jabs me, that she’s asking about this again.

From Literature

Here we were, clinging to the last shard and shred of summertime, while downstairs Tansy was frying up mush like it was September.

From Literature

More shards crashed down, the echoes rumbling on and on.

From Literature

I crossed the room, hurrying toward our living quarters, my shoes crunching against the pale green shards.

From Literature

Yeesookyung collects ceramic shards of work discarded by master craftsmen due to minor flaws and reassembles these fragments into bubbling sculptures held together with 24 karat gold.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• fragment
• particle
• remnant