Spall
/spɔːl/noun
To break or chip away into fragments, or a fragment chipped from a larger material such as stone, concrete, or metal.
Did you know?In modern engineering, “spalling” can occur when heated concrete explosively sheds fragments, making an ordinary chip a potential warning sign of structural danger.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*spaldijaną
“To split or cleave; a reconstructed Germanic form associated with breaking material apart.”
Middle Dutch
MDu.
spallen
“To split or splinter.”
16th–17th Century
English
spall
“To break into fragments or chips; recorded in English as a technical and general verb.”
17th Century
English
spall
“A fragment or chip broken from stone, metal, or another solid substance.”
Modern English
English
spall / spalling
“To chip, flake, or fragment, especially through weathering, impact, corrosion, or heat.”