spread
To stretch out, open out (a material etc.) so that it more fully covers a given area of space.
Example
“He spread his newspaper on the table.”
Other meanings
To disperse, to scatter or distribute over a given area.
“I spread the rice grains evenly over the floor.”
To proliferate; to become more widely present, to be disseminated.
Synonyms
- distribute
Example sentences
Word history
From Old English "sprǣdan" (to spread, expand).
Where this comes from
This definition is adapted from “spread” on Wiktionary, by its contributors; example sentences are from Tatoeba, credited to their authors above; related-word lists use Open English WordNet (CC BY 4.0, based on Princeton WordNet), published under CC BY-SA 4.0. This page is published under the same licence.