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Shard dates back to Old English (where it was spelled sceard) and is related to Old English scieran, meaning "to cut." English speakers have adopted the modernized shard spelling for most uses, but archaeologists prefer to spell the word sherd when referring to the ancient fragments of pottery (sometimes referred to specifically as potsherds) they unearth. While shard initially referred to exactly such items, today the word is also used more broadly to encompass slivers of intangible concepts. A baseless accusation may be made "without a shard of evidence," and fans of the losing team may "cling to a shard of hope" until the final score. The utility of shard is its, ahem, point.
Examples of shard in a Sentence
Kerry Breen, CBS News, 26 May 2025
Covered in shards of stained glass, Casa Batlló is often compared to Claude Monet’s Water Lilies for the way the building’s colors glimmer and shift from blue to green in the changing light.
—Jennifer Fernández Solano, Forbes.com, 22 May 2025
Neolithic masons filled the gaps between individual stones with shards of greywacke, a type of sandstone that also lined the chamber floor.
—Eli Wizevich, Smithsonian Magazine, 22 May 2025
The shell had exploded at a nearby water tank, obliterating windows and sending shards of glass flying, hitting his brother-in-law and niece.
—Rhea Mogul, CNN Money, 14 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for shard
Cite this Entry
“Shard.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shard. Accessed 9 Jun. 2025.
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shard
noun
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