Standard Lemma guide
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
noun
A chip or splinter of wood.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: Scotland
Qualifier: Now chiefly dialectal
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
A lath; a shaving or chip, as of wood or stone.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
A strengthening cross timber.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
One of a number of crossbands fastened temporarily to the frames to keep them in place until properly secured.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Topics: business, manufacturing, shipbuilding
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: spaling
Antonyms: none provided
History
From Middle English spale (“splinter”), perhaps partly from Old English *spalu (“flat bar, flake, chip”) or Old Norse spǫlr (“plank, rail, bar, short piece of wood”), both from Proto-Germanic *spaluz (“pole, rod, thin bar, lath”); and partly as an alteration of Old English speld (“ember, flake, torch, splinter, thin piece of wood used as a torch”), from Proto-Germanic *speldą (“that which is split, splinter, board”); both from Proto-Indo-European *(s)pala-, *(s)pel- (“to split in two, split in half”). Cognate with Middle High German spale ("rung of a ladder"; > dialectal German Spale (“a wooden split, wedge”)), dialectal Swedish spalu (“splinter”), dialectal Norwegian spel, spela, spila (“a splinter”), Icelandic spölur (“bit, short piece”). See also split.
