splice

1 of 2

verb

ˈsplīs 

spliced; splicing

transitive verb

1

a

: to unite (two ropes or two parts of a rope) by interweaving the strands

b

: to unite (two lengths of magnetic tape, photographic film, etc.) by overlapping and securing together two ends

2

: to unite, link, or insert as if by splicing

3

: to combine or insert (something) by genetic engineering

spliced a human gene for insulin into a bacterium

splicer noun

splice

2 of 2

noun

1

: a joining or joint made by splicing something

2

: marriage, wedding

Illustration of splice

• splice 1

Examples of splice in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

On that episode of The Scott Jennings Show, produced by Salem Media, Jennings aired a 42-second montage of Piker that, according to the complaint, was spliced together from three separate Twitch broadcasts. — Emma Witman, Fortune, 5 Nov. 2026

Developed with creative chairman Reed Krakoff and design teams in New York and Bali, the assortment splices the siblings’ contrasting aesthetics with John Hardy’s longstanding tradition of handcraft. — Thomas Waller, Footwear News, 22 Oct. 2026

Noun

To keep our attention, Parreno and Gordon splice in snippets of overhead shots or official TV footage. — Sebastian Smee, The Atlantic, 11 July 2026

The minute a splice in the film strip is made, reality is being edited. — Peter Bogdanovich, IndieWire, 13 May 2026

Word History

Etymology

Verb

obsolete Dutch splissen; akin to Middle Dutch splitten to split

First Known Use

Verb

circa 1525, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun

1627, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing splice

• comma splice

Rhymes for splice

• dice
• feis
• gneiss
• grice
• ice
• lice
• mice
• slice
• spice
• thrice
• trice
• twice

Kids Definition

splice

1 of 2 verb

ˈsplīs 

spliced; splicing

1

: to unite (as two ropes) by weaving the strands together

2

: to unite (as pieces of film) by connecting the ends together

3

: to unite, link, or insert as if by splicing

splicer noun

splice

2 of 2 noun

: a joining or joint made by splicing

Medical Definition

splice

transitive verb

ˈsplīs 

spliced; splicing

: to join together or insert (as segments of RNA or DNA) to form new genetic combinations

spliced a human gene for insulin into a bacterium

see gene-splicing