disperse
Americanverb (used with object)
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to drive or send off in various directions; scatter.
to disperse a crowd.
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to spread widely; disseminate.
to disperse knowledge.
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to dispel; cause to vanish.
The wind dispersed the fog.
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Physical Chemistry. to cause (particles) to separate uniformly throughout a solid, liquid, or gas.
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Optics. to subject (light) to dispersion.
verb (used without object)
adjective
verb
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to scatter; distribute over a wide area
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to dissipate or cause to dissipate
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to leave or cause to leave a gathering, often in a random manner
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to separate or be separated by dispersion
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(tr) to diffuse or spread (news, information, etc)
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to separate (particles) throughout a solid, liquid, or gas, as in the formation of a suspension or colloid
adjective
Related Words
See scatter.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of disperse
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English dispersen, disparsen (from Middle French disperser, ) from Latin dispersus (past participle of dispergere ), equivalent to di- di- 2 + -sper(g)- “scatter” (stem of -spergere, combining form of spargere “to scatter, strew”) + -sus past participle suffix
Explanation
To make a crowd at a party disperse, you could take away the food, turn off the music and ask for volunteers to clean up. Disperse is to spread out people or things, making them move in different directions. Imagine yourself standing on a basketball court holding a cup packed tight with marbles. If you turn it over, the marbles will disperse across the floor, moving away from you in all directions. Another word for this is scatter. Don't confuse this word with disburse, which means to distribute money. Remember that false friends disperse when you cease to disburse.
Vocabulary lists containing disperse
Fahrenheit 451
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The Watsons Go to Birmingham
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All American Boys
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
This material consists of a single atomic layer of carbon with oxygen groups attached, giving it the ability to disperse well in water and perform a range of functions.
From Science Daily • Apr. 26, 2026
For business, it eliminated the need for geographic proximity, allowing corporations to disperse their operations and enabling the first skyscrapers to function efficiently.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 24, 2026
Five people were arrested for failing to disperse, Coss said.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 11, 2026
They believe carbon monoxide fumes were leaking into the cabin of the plane during Sala's flight, and the lack of an audible alarm meant Ibbotson was unable to take action to disperse the deadly gas.
From BBC • Mar. 29, 2026
He told Thylor to ask the people outside to disperse.
From "The Killer Angels: The Classic Novel of the Civil War" by Michael Shaara
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
