splinter group

noun

1. a small organization that becomes separated from or acts apart from an original larger group or a number of other small groups, with which it would normally be united, as because of disagreement.

splinter group

noun

1. a number of members of an organization, political party, etc, who split from the main body and form an independent association, usually as the result of dissension

Idioms and Phrases

A part of an organization that breaks away from the main body, usually owing to disagreement. For example, Perot's supporters at first constituted a splinter group but soon formed a third political party . This idiom alludes to the noun splinter , a fragment of wood or some other material that is split or broken off. [Mid-1900s]

Example Sentences

One afternoon shortly after the vote, members of the splinter group gathered outside of San Francisco, hiking through the chaparrals of the San Bruno hills, and plotted what to do next.

From Salon

Yet the next year Russell and Kendall formed a splinter group called Jack Russell’s Great White that began touring clubs around the country.

From Los Angeles Times

Some in the splinter group remained overnight in the complex, a fire-damaged structure near People’s Park, while others camped in tents outside it, hanging Palestinian flags and spray-painting the area.

From New York Times

Colombia’s government in October announced peace talks with the FARC-EMC splinter group after both sides agreed to a three-month long cease-fire.

From Seattle Times

In an unmarked laboratory stationed between the campuses of Harvard and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, a splinter group of scientists is hunting for the next billion-dollar drug.

From New York Times