shrapnel
noun
shrap·nel
| \ ˈshrap-nᵊl
, especially Southern ˈsrap-\
, especially Southern ˈsrap-\
plural shrapnel
Definition of shrapnel
1
: a projectile that consists of a case provided with a powder charge and a large number of usually lead balls and that is exploded in flight
2
: bomb, mine, or shell fragments
Examples of shrapnel in a Sentence
He has a piece of shrapnel in his leg.
Shrapnel from the explosion wounded many people.
Recent Examples on the Web
The girl, who actually turns 9 in late September, was hit with shrapnel in the face and leg after a gunman opened fire on worshipers at Chabad of Poway in April. — San Diego Union-Tribune, "Young girl wounded in synagogue shooting celebrates her 9th birthday," 25 Aug. 2019 Miller was eventually drafted and served as a medic in the Vietnam War, where he was hit in the head with shrapnel that caused permanent brain injuries. — NBC News, "Woman claims Omaha priest forced her to give up baby for adoption," 20 Aug. 2019 A year earlier, a pressure cooker packed with shrapnel exploded in Chelsea on 23rd Street, injuring at least 29 people. — Michael Gold, New York Times, "Rice Cookers That Prompted Bomb Scare in Subway Investigated as ‘Hoax Devices’," 16 Aug. 2019 In February, a Texas man died after his e-cigarette exploded and shrapnel tore through his carotid artery. — Arman Azad, CNN, "This teen's vape exploded, shattering his jaw," 19 June 2019 For Andrew Munya, who was injured in the Westgate attack when shrapnel hit his left shoulder, Kenya will not be safe until al-Shabab is dealt with for good. — Tom Odula, Fox News, "5 years after mall Kenya attack, al-Shabab's threat grows," 21 Sep. 2018 So everybody remembers when that website fell over, caught on fire, shrapnel went everywhere. — Recode Staff, Recode, "Full transcript: Matt Cutts of the U.S. Digital Service on Recode Decode," 12 July 2018 Social media has exposed the shrapnel of the adversarial relationship our country sometimes requires between our politicians and the press. — Greg Burton, azcentral, "Threats and attacks on journalists aren't rare. They also don't deter us.," 30 June 2018 The blast sent shrapnel into his eyes and ripped off most of his right hand. — Jeremy Roebuck, Philly.com, "Ex-child soldiers say Delco man turned them into killers," 19 June 2018These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'shrapnel.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for shrapnel
shrapnel
noun
English Language Learners Definition of shrapnel
: small metal pieces that scatter outwards from an exploding bomb, shell, or mine
See the full definition for shrapnel in the English Language Learners Dictionary
shrapnel
noun
shrap·nel
| \ ˈshrap-nᵊl
\
\
Kids Definition of shrapnel
: small metal pieces that scatter outwards from an exploding bomb, shell, or mine
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