splitting

adjective

split·​ting ˈspli-tiŋ How to pronounce splitting (audio)
: that splits or causes to split: such as
a
: causing a piercing sensation
a splitting headache
b
: very fast or quick
racing off at a splitting paceCharles Dickens
c
: sidesplitting
a splitting laugh

Examples of splitting in a Sentence

the horse took off at a splitting gallop
Recent Examples on the Web The whole system, which has been likened to an anvil for splitting N2, requires at least ten to twenty genes (no one is quite sure of the minimum), though some bacteria use fifty or more. Matthew Hutson, The New Yorker, 6 Feb. 2024 That leaves Johnson splitting time with Khalil Herbert. Eddie Brown, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 Sep. 2023 And Moscow would have had a better chance of splitting European governments from one another. Joshua Shifrinson, Foreign Affairs, 17 Oct. 2023 Maguire’s Spider-Man stops a runaway subway train, and Holland’s uses webs to hold a splitting ferry together. WIRED, 29 Sep. 2023 This is sort of like what’s happening to each half of the splitting boat, with each side tilting away from the center. WIRED, 29 Sep. 2023 With the two splitting reps and so much in transition, it's been hard for any one wide receiver to stand out. Usa Today Network, USA TODAY, 10 Aug. 2023 Her last paper explored quasi-stellar objects – giant, bright galaxy centers powered by super massive black holes – the light of which would make a splitting atom seem like a tiny flash in the universe. Erica Huang, Scientific American, 20 July 2023 In fact, scientists have found areas of molten rock and stretching in the Earth’s crust miles from the rift, a discovery that defies conventional geological wisdom, which holds that all the splitting activity should be happening at the rift itself. Ashley Stimpson, Popular Mechanics, 21 June 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'splitting.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1593, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of splitting was in 1593

Dictionary Entries Near splitting

Cite this Entry

“Splitting.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/splitting. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

splitting

adjective
split·​ting
ˈsplit-iŋ
: very severe
a splitting headache

More from Merriam-Webster on splitting

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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