1.nounAn anti-personnel artillery shell used in WWI which carries a large number of individual bullets close to the target and then ejects them to allow them to continue along the shell's trajectory and strike the target individually.
2.nounA collective term for shot, fragments, or debris thrown out by an exploding shell, bomb or landmine.
3.nounLoose change.
4.nounDebris.
"The dog ate my sandwich, and there was shrapnel all over the place from him tearing open the bag."