shrapnel

Meaning

1. (historical, uncountable, usually) An anti-personnel artillery shell used in World War I which carries a large number of individual bullets or balls close to the target and then ejects them to allow them to continue along the shell's trajectory and strike the target individually.
2. (historical, uncountable, usually) The bullets or balls from the aforementioned type of artillery shell.
3. (uncountable, usually) Any shot, fragments, or debris thrown out by an exploding shell, bomb, or landmine.
4. (broadly, figuratively, uncountable, usually) Debris.
5. (figuratively, slang, uncountable, usually) Loose change.

Synonyms

shrapnel shell

canister

fragments

bombshell

smithereens

explosive shell

loose change

Translations

Schrapnell

shrapnel

granaatkartets

shrapnel

metralla

estilhaço

metralla

shrapnel

şarapnel

bombe à fragmentation

schrapnell

granada de metralla

θραύσμα

obus à balles

Pronounced as (IPA)

/ˈʃɹæpnəl/

Etymology

From Shrapnel. Named after British army officer Henry Shrapnel (1761–1842) who invented an anti-personnel shell that transported a large number of bullets to the target before releasing them, at a far greater distance than rifles could fire the bullets individually. The surname is likely a metathesized form of Charbonnel, a diminutive of Old French charbon (“charcoal”) in reference to hair color, complexion, or the like.