to shatter
145
2.8
- verb
- /ˈʃætər/
- Its fingers tighten and the jar shatters, mayonnaise spattering to the floor in big round globules.
- shatter a glass
- shatter a window
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Watch on YouTubeIt fell off, swung down, shattered on the ground, ruined my concert.
- It fell off, swung down, shattered on the ground, ruined my concert.
- I told her it shattered into three pieces.
- I go down, shatters my orbital on my good eye.
- I mean, it's like, it's like the kind of sound that can, you know, shatter glass, that kind of thing.
- Really hard so it didn't shatter when I bit off the towel.
- Store rash on Bettis cause a snack table to shatter, so get the Doritos.
Examples
-
The exposed part of the window above him shatters, raining glass on his head.
Fiction book (1992) -
The roof warps, Spanish tiles shatter, and rain down on the ground.
Fiction book (1990) -
Okay, but what if my phone just shatters into a million pieces?
-
America's forces have the technology, training, and raw power to shatter conventional enemies.
Academic text (2000) -
I have no idea how this happened, but it just shattered and it bounced up.
-
When it hits the furniture, it shatters in shards all over the floor.
Fiction book (1991) -
Its breath could wither trees, scorch grass, and shatter stones.
-
The fans pelted the bus with bricks, stones, and debris, shattering its windows and injuring several players.
Academic text (2010) -
The plexiglass case finally shatters, and the penguin falls through, landing atop Gotham City.
Fiction book (1992) -
He accidentally dropped the glass, and it shattered into tiny pieces all over the floor.
Synonyms
∞
1.0
To change a large bill into smaller bills
278
2.1
To break something into many pieces using great force
233
2.9
To badly damage or destroy something
176
1.4
Break open suddenly because of pressure inside
162
2.7
Separate something into smaller pieces
158
3.4
To break into small pieces or become weaker and collapse
100
4.7
To break a hard object, for example a bone or rock
92
6.8
To break open suddenly and violently
81
2.3
Break suddenly and completely, often with a sharp noise
52
5.8
To break something into pieces by hitting it hard
50
3.1
To break into pieces or fall into separate parts
50
5.8
Fall apart into smaller pieces or stop working together
46
3.0
To separate into pieces, for example a machine or a group
27
4.7
To damage something very badly so it breaks into pieces
20
3.9
To break into many small, sharp pieces like wood or glass
18
3.7
To break into small pieces or make something break apart
2
8.3
To divide something into parts, for example by cutting it or by sharing it among people
1
8.2
To break something into many small pieces
Antonyms
Phrasal Verbs
- Informal
1
4.1
Say or do something that makes people feel less nervous and start talking
How Broken
- US
8
7.4
145
2.8
278
2.1
∞
1.0
327
1.0
140
2.1
Surface Forms
Etymology
Shatter comes from old words that meant 'to break into pieces'. Imagine a glass falling and suddenly turning into many sharp pieces; so shatter means to break suddenly into many small pieces.