spread
spread definition
spread (spred)
transitive verb spread, spreading spread′·ing
- to draw out so as to display more fully; open or stretch out so as to cover more space; unfold or unfurl
- to lay out in display; exhibit
- to move apart (the fingers, arms, legs, wings, etc.)
- to distribute over a surface or area; scatter; disperse
- to distribute among a group to spread the wealth
- to distribute in a thin layer; smear to spread butter on toast
- to cover by smearing (with something) to spread bread with jelly
- to extend or prolong in time to spread payments over a two-year period
- to cause to be widely or more widely known, felt, existent, etc.; disseminate; propagate; diffuse to spread news, a disease, etc.
- to cover, overlay, or deck (with something)
- to set (a table) for a meal
- to set (food) on a table
- to push apart or farther apart
- ☆ to record in full; enter (on a record)
- to flatten out (a rivet, etc.) by hammering
Etymology: ME spreden < OE sprædan, akin to Ger spreiten < IE *sprei-d-, to sprinkle, strew < base *(s)p(h)er-, to strew, spray, burst (of buds) > spray, sprawl, sprout
intransitive verb
- to extend itself; be extended or expanded
- to become distributed or dispersed
- to be made widely or more widely known, felt, existent, etc.; be disseminated, propagated, or diffused
- to be pushed apart or farther apart
- to be of such consistency that it can be distributed in a thin layer, as butter; be capable of being smeared
noun
- the act of spreading; extension; expansion; diffusion
- the extent to which something is spread or can be spread
- the interval or difference between the highest and lowest figures of a set, as of the scores of a test
- the difference between related prices, rates, etc., as that between the prices at which a broker buys and sells shares of a stock
- in betting, the number of points by which a team, esp. a football team, is expected to defeat its opponent
- an expanse; extent; stretch; compass
- ☆
- two facing pages of a newspaper, magazine, etc., treated as a single continuous sheet, as in advertising
- printed matter set across a page, or across several columns, of a newspaper, magazine, etc.
- ☆ a cloth cover for a table, bed, etc.
- ☆ any soft substance, as jam, butter, etc., used for spreading on bread
- Informal a meal, esp. one with a wide variety of food
- Informal a pretentious display
- ☆ a ranch, or any large farm or estate
spread Idioms
spread oneself thin
☆ to try to do too many things at once
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