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spread
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- pronunciation:
- spred
- parts of speech:
- transitive verb, intransitive verb, noun
- features:
- Word Combinations (verb, noun), Word Builder, Word Explorer
part of speech: |
transitive verb |
inflections: |
spreads, spreading, spread |
definition 1: |
to open, expand, or unfold.
He spread the newspaper and lay it on the table.
- synonyms:
- expand, extend, open, stretch
- antonyms:
- compress, fold
- similar words:
- carry, lay out, roll, unfold
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definition 2: |
to widen the space between.
He spread his arms to hug the children.She spread the curtains to let in the sunlight.- synonyms:
- open
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definition 3: |
to put on in a layer.
She spread some jam on her bread.- synonyms:
- layer, slather, smear
- similar words:
- apply, bedaub, coat, daub, heap, overspread, paint, pave, pile, plaster
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definition 4: |
to cover with a layer.
She spread the slices of bread with butter. |
definition 5: |
to scatter or distribute.
The neighbors spread the news about the strange incident.One infected worker spread the disease among his co-workers at the factory.- synonyms:
- broadcast, circulate, disperse, disseminate, distribute, strew
- antonyms:
- suppress
- similar words:
- bruit, cast, diffuse, pass, propagate, publish, scatter, sift, sow
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definition 6: |
to set (a table) for a meal.
By five o'clock the banquet tables had all been beautifully spread.- synonyms:
- lay, set
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related words: |
bag, broaden, carry, communicate, crumb, diversify, dope, enlarge, fan, muck, noise, overrun, prime, radiate, rub, space, stretch, transmit |
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part of speech: |
intransitive verb |
definition 1: |
to become distributed or dispersed over an extended area.
The weeds spread until they covered the entire garden.The disease spread across the city.- synonyms:
- diffuse, expand, permeate, radiate
- similar words:
- disperse, effuse, extend, fan, range, stretch
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definition 2: |
to become stretched out, parted, or extended.
As the wings of the butterfly spread, a beautiful pattern is revealed.- synonyms:
- expand, extend, open, reach, stretch
- similar words:
- fan, roll, sweep, unfold
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definition 3: |
to be capable of being applied in a layer.
The butter is soft now and spreads easily.- similar words:
- smear
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definition 4: |
to be broadcast or disseminated.
The rumor spread quickly over the internet.- synonyms:
- circulate
- similar words:
- come out, scatter
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related words: |
bag, balloon, branch, bulge, diffuse, dilate, diverge, enlarge, go, mushroom, pass, penetrate, permeate, propagate, ramble, run, run wild |
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part of speech: |
noun |
definition 1: |
the act or process of spreading.
She stopped the spread of the spilled milk with a paper towel.- synonyms:
- covering, distribution
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definition 2: |
the process of extending, expanding, or diffusing.
The city took urgent measures to stop the spread of the illness.- synonyms:
- diffusion, dispersion, expansion, extension
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definition 3: |
a stretch of open space; expanse.
- synonyms:
- expanse, extent, field, reach, stretch, sweep
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definition 4: |
farmland; ranch.
- synonyms:
- farmstead, homestead, ranch
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definition 5: |
a cloth covering that is put over certain articles of furniture such as a bed or table.
- synonyms:
- bedspread, comforter, counterpane, coverlet, quilt, tablecloth
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definition 6: |
food that can be spread on crackers, bread, vegetables, or the like.
- synonyms:
- butter, paste
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definition 7: |
(informal) a large meal, usu. set out on a table.
- synonyms:
- feed
- similar words:
- repast
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definition 8: |
an article or advertisement extending over a number of columns or over two facing pages in a newspaper or magazine.
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related words: |
application, banquet, canopy, diffusion, extent, farm, feast, feed, jam, meal |
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derivation: |
spreadable (adj.) |
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