spread — English Dictionary

spread
Pronunciations (4)
  • /spɹɛd/
  • /spɹiːd/
    Pronunciation notes
    • UK
  • /spɹid/
    Pronunciation notes
    • General-American
  • spɹɛd

Verb

  1. To stretch out, open out (a material etc.) so that it more fully covers a given area of space.

    Usage
    • Transitive
    Examples

    He spread his newspaper on the table.

  2. To extend (individual rays, limbs etc.); to stretch out in varying or opposing directions. simple past and past participle of spread

    Usage
    • Transitive
    Examples

    I spread my arms wide and welcomed him home.

  3. To disperse, to scatter or distribute over a given area.

    Usage
    • Transitive
    Examples

    I spread the rice grains evenly over the floor.

  4. To proliferate; to become more widely present, to be disseminated.

    Usage
    • Intransitive
    Examples
    More examples (3)

    Whether modern, industrial man is less or more warlike than his hunter-gatherer ancestors is impossible to determine.[…]One thing that is true, though, is that murder rates have fallen over the centuries, as policing has spread and the routine carrying of weapons has diminished. Modern society may not have done anything about war. But peace is a lot more peaceful.

    As the Erzurum affair indicated, the janissaries in the provinces and in the capital city were in close touch, and thus the movements were quick to spread to Istanbul.

    I placed my hands on his cheeks, and this time, I kissed him. “Don't worry, I'm not going to let anything spoil our day. It's just you and me.” A sad smile spread across his face, and I could tell he wanted to believe me, but didn't.

  5. To disseminate; to cause to proliferate, to make (something) widely known or present.

    Usage
    • Transitive
    Synonyms
    Examples

    The missionaries quickly spread their new message across the country.

  6. To take up a larger area or space; to expand, be extended.

    Usage
    • Intransitive
    Synonyms
    Examples

    I dropped my glass; the water spread quickly over the tiled floor.

  7. To smear, to distribute in a thin layer.

    Usage
    • Transitive
    Examples

    She liked to spread butter on her toast while it was still hot.

  8. To cover (something) with a thin layer of some substance, as of butter.

    Usage
    • Transitive
    Examples

    He always spreads his toast with peanut butter and strawberry jam.

  9. To prepare; to set and furnish with provisions.

    Examples

    to spread a table

    More examples (1)

    And Enid brought sweet cakes to make them cheer, / And in her veil enfolded, manchet bread. / And then, because their hall must also serve / For kitchen, boil'd the flesh, and spread the board, / And stood behind, and waited on the three.

  10. To open one’s legs, especially for sexual favours.

    Usage
    • Intransitive
    • Slang
    Examples
    More examples (1)

    This often sounds like the rap of a demented DJ: the way she moves has got to be good news, can't get loose till I feel the juice— suck and spread, bitch, yeah bounce for me baby.

    Yes I wore a slinky red thing. Does that mean I should spread for you, your friends, your father, Mr Ed?

    I don't want to move too fast, but / Can't resist your sexy ass / Just spread, spread for me; / (I can't, I can't wait to get you home)

Noun

  1. The act of spreading.

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Uncountable
    Examples

    No flower hath that kind of spread that the woodbine hath.

  2. Something that has been spread.

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Uncountable
  3. A layout, pattern or design of cards arranged for a reading.

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Uncountable
  4. An expanse of land.

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Uncountable
    Examples

    November 29, 1712, Andrew Freeport, a letter to The Spectator I have got a fine spread of improvable lands.

  5. A large tract of land used to raise livestock; a cattle ranch.

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Uncountable
    Examples

    - Can't wait till I get my own spread and won't have to put up with Joe Aguirre's crap no more.

  6. A piece of material used as a cover (such as a bedspread).

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Uncountable
    Examples

    Linen shawls and spreads show up in secondhand clothing stores like those in the row on St. Marks Place in New York City.

  7. A large meal, especially one laid out on a table.

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Uncountable
  8. Any form of food designed to be spread, such as butters or jams.

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Uncountable
    • usually
    Examples
    More examples (1)

    Ferd liked to experiment with sandwich spreads ― the one he liked most was cream-cheese, olives, anchovy and avocado, mashed up with a little mayonnaise ― but Oscar always had the same pink luncheon-meat.

  9. A set of multiple torpedoes launched on side-by-side, slowly-diverging paths toward one or more enemy ships.

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Uncountable
    Examples
    More examples (1)

    Johnston, meanwhile, has managed to get within five miles of its target, and fires a full spread of ten torpedoes. Minutes later, at least two, possibly three, tear the bow off the hapless cruiser Kumano. First blood, unbelievably, therefore, goes to the Americans.

  10. Food improvised by inmates from various ingredients to relieve the tedium of prison food.

    Usage
    • Slang
    • Uncountable
    Synonyms
  11. An item in a newspaper or magazine that occupies more than one column or page.

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Uncountable
  12. Two facing pages in a book, newspaper etc.

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Uncountable
  13. A numerical difference.

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Uncountable
  14. A measure of how far the data tend to deviate from the average.

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Uncountable
    Examples

    The spread is usually measured using standard deviation and variance.

  15. The difference between the wholesale and retail prices.

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Uncountable
  16. The difference between the price of a futures month and the price of another month of the same commodity.

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Uncountable
  17. The purchase of a futures contract of one delivery month against the sale of another futures delivery month of the same commodity.

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Uncountable
  18. The purchase of one delivery month of one commodity against the sale of that same delivery month of a different commodity.

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Uncountable
  19. An arbitrage transaction of the same commodity in two markets, executed to take advantage of a profit from price discrepancies.

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Uncountable
  20. The difference between bidding and asking price.

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Uncountable
  21. The difference between the prices of two similar items.

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Uncountable
  22. An unlimited expanse of discontinuous points.

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Uncountable
  23. The surface in proportion to the depth of a cut gemstone.

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Uncountable
  24. Excessive width of the trails of ink written on overly absorbent paper.

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Uncountable
  25. The difference between the teams' final scores at the end of a sport match.

    Usage
    • Countable
    • Uncountable
    Examples
    More examples (1)

    College basketball games don't lack for gambling propositions—the moneyline, a straightforward wager on which team will win; the over-under gamble on the total number of points scored by both teams—but the most popular wager is the spread. The spread represents the predicted difference between the two teams in the final score of the game.

Verb

  1. To speedread; to recite one's arguments at an extremely fast pace.

    Usage
    • Intransitive
    • Transitive
    Examples

    You're assuming that if someone spreads they aren't a good orator. That's flawed logic.

    In my first year on the circuit, I learned to spread and did decently well. I won most of my rounds, not that I could tell you how I did it.

Noun

  1. An act or instance of spreading (speedreading).

    Examples
    More examples (2)

    If debate is a game, then the execution of a "spread" is like a well-timed blitz in football. Convincing a judge that your opponents' arguments would cause human extinction is equivalent to a successful Hail Mary pass.

    It's one L ur chillin just keep practicing read the ballets figure what you did wrong and practice with improvements in mind, get better at spreads and k theory debates.

Adjective

  1. distributed or spread over a considerable extent

    Synonyms
    Examples

    has ties with many widely dispersed friends

    eleven million Jews are spread throughout Europe

  2. prepared or arranged for a meal; especially having food set out

    Examples

    a table spread with food

  3. fully extended in width

    Synonyms
    Examples

    outspread wings

    with arms spread wide

Noun

  1. process or result of distributing or extending over a wide expanse of space

    Synonyms
  2. a conspicuous disparity or difference as between two figures

    Synonyms
    Broader terms
    Examples

    gap between income and outgo

    the spread between lending and borrowing costs

  3. farm consisting of a large tract of land along with facilities needed to raise livestock (especially cattle)

    Broader terms
  4. a haphazard distribution in all directions

    Synonyms
  5. a tasty mixture to be spread on bread or crackers or used in preparing other dishes

    Synonyms
    Broader terms
  6. a meal that is well prepared and greatly enjoyed

    Synonyms
    Broader terms
    Examples

    a banquet for the graduating seniors

    the Thanksgiving feast

    More examples (1)

    they put out quite a spread

  7. two facing pages of a book or other publication

    Broader terms
  8. the expansion of a person's girth (especially at middle age)

    Broader terms
    Examples

    she exercised to avoid that middle-aged spread

  9. decorative cover for a bed

  10. act of extending over a wider scope or expanse of space or time

    Synonyms
    Broader terms

Verb

  1. distribute or disperse widely

    Synonyms
    Antonyms
    Broader terms
    Examples

    The invaders spread their language all over the country

  2. become distributed or widespread

    Synonyms
    Broader terms
    Examples

    the infection spread

    Optimism spread among the population

  3. spread across or over

    Synonyms
    Broader terms
    Examples

    A big oil spot spread across the water

  4. spread out or open from a closed or folded state

    Broader terms
    Examples

    open the map

    spread your arms

  5. cause to become widely known

    Examples

    spread information

    circulate a rumor

    More examples (1)

    broadcast the news

  6. become widely known and passed on

    Examples

    the rumor spread

    the story went around in the office

  7. strew or distribute over an area

    Examples

    He spread fertilizer over the lawn

    scatter cards across the table

  8. move outward

    Broader terms
    Examples

    The soldiers fanned out

  9. cover by spreading something over

    Broader terms
    Examples

    spread the bread with cheese

  10. distribute over a surface in a layer

    Examples

    spread cheese on a piece of bread

Word forms
spreadsspreadingspreads

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