Fragment
/ˈfræɡmənt/
Definitions
2 meaningsA small part broken or separated off something.
/ˈfræɡmənt/
She found a fragment of the lost document.
💡 Simply: Imagine you drop your favorite plate and it breaks. Each little piece is a fragment! It's a small part of a bigger thing that's now broken.
👶 For kids: A little piece of something that broke off.
More Examples
The vase shattered into many fragments.
How It's Used
"Archaeologists discovered fragments of ancient pottery at the site."
"The author's notes contained fragments of his uncompleted novel."
To break or cause to break into fragments.
/fræɡˈment/
The bomb fragmented the building.
💡 Simply: Imagine something that's one big piece suddenly turning into lots of little ones. If you drop a glass and it breaks into many pieces, it's fragmented. It's like making something come apart.
👶 For kids: To break something into little pieces.
More Examples
His memories of the event were fragmented.
The artist fragmented the canvas into a series of panels.
How It's Used
"The explosion fragmented the glass."
"The company's structure fragmented after the takeover."
Synonyms & Antonyms
Synonyms
Antonyms
Idioms & expressions
fragmented market
A market with a large number of small competitors.
"The fragmented market made it difficult for the company to gain a significant market share."
From Latin *frangere* 'to break'. It entered English in the 14th century, initially meaning a piece broken off.
Historically, the word was used to describe broken parts of things, evolving to also describe the state of being broken.
Memory tip
Think of breaking a dish and seeing all the fragments.
Word Origin
"to break (frangere)"