fragmented

adjective

frag·​ment·​ed ˈfrag-ˌmen-təd 

1

: broken or separated into distinct parts

Another fragmented language group is the Austroasiatic family, whose most widely spoken languages are Vietnamese and Cambodian.

—Jared Diamond

The reality seems to be that the global audience for movies has become increasingly diverse and fragmented, which runs against Hollywood's obsession with finding that magic common denominator.

—Peter Bart

2

computing : having related or associated pieces of stored data disorganized in a way that makes them more difficult to access

Fragmented files require much more work to read than contiguous files, because to do so DOS must chase down each sector, possibly moving the disk head back and forth many times. Each of these … slows the task at hand and results in additional wear and tear on your hard disk.

—Brett Glass

You probably won't notice a marked performance boost unless your hard drive is extremely fragmented.

—Doug Stanley

Synonyms

• broken
• busted
• fractured
• shattered
• smashed

Examples of fragmented in a Sentence

restoring the fragmented Roman sculpture was like putting together a jigsaw puzzle

Recent Examples on the Web

This results in fragmented data and a lack of cohesive information flow, complicating AR management further. —Sunil Rajasekar, Forbes, 19 Dec. 2024

Their habitats are becoming increasingly fragmented, meaning patches of habitat are decreasing in size and becoming increasingly isolated and less connected, according to the World Wildlife Fund. —Zach Bradshaw, The Arizona Republic, 17 Dec. 2024

Even excessive salt consumption on a single occasion can cause fragmented sleep patterns in some people.25 Long-Term Complications The main concern about eating too much salt is its impact on your blood pressure and heart. —James Myhre & Dennis Sifris, Md, Verywell Health, 16 Dec. 2024

The fragmented and frustrating nature of our current EV charging landscape has been widely — and correctly — cited as one of the most significant barriers to EV adoption. —Andrew J. Hawkins, The Verge, 13 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1817, in the meaning defined at sense 1