sprawl
Americanverb (used without object)
-
sprawls,
present (3rd person singular)
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sprawled,
past participle, past
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sprawling
present participle
-
to be stretched or spread out in an unnatural or ungraceful manner.
The puppy's legs sprawled in all directions.
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to sit or lie in a relaxed position with the limbs spread out carelessly or ungracefully.
He sprawled across the bed.
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to spread out, extend, or be distributed in a straggling or irregular manner, as vines, buildings, handwriting, etc.
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to crawl awkwardly with the aid of all the limbs; scramble.
verb (used with object)
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sprawls,
present (3rd person singular)
-
sprawled,
past participle, past
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sprawling
present participle
-
to stretch out (the limbs) as in sprawling.
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to spread out or distribute in a straggling manner.
noun
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sprawls
plural
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the act or an instance of sprawling; a sprawling posture.
-
a straggling array of something.
verb
-
(intr) to sit or lie in an ungainly manner with one's limbs spread out
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to fall down or knock down with the limbs spread out in an ungainly way
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to spread out or cause to spread out in a straggling fashion
his handwriting sprawled all over the paper
noun
-
the act or an instance of sprawling
-
a sprawling posture or arrangement of items
-
-
the urban area formed by the expansion of a town or city into surrounding countryside
the urban sprawl
-
the process by which this has happened
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Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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sprawlsimple
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sprawlssimple
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have sprawledperfect
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has sprawledperfect
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am sprawlingprogressive
-
are sprawlingprogressive
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is sprawlingprogressive
-
have been sprawlingperfect progressive
-
has been sprawlingperfect progressive
Past
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sprawledsimple
-
had sprawledperfect
-
was sprawlingprogressive
-
were sprawlingprogressive
-
had been sprawlingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of sprawl
before 1000; Middle English spraulen to move awkwardly, Old English spreawlian; cognate with Frisian (N dial.) spraweli
Explanation
When you sprawl, you spread out in an ungainly way, like when you're lying down comfortably on the sofa with your legs and arms flung out around you. As a noun, the most common use of this word nowadays is in the phrase "urban sprawl" (or "suburban sprawl"), which describes municipal development — things like new neighborhoods, shopping malls, and office complexes — that spreads out of control, according to no approved plan, and usually with pretty ugly results.
Vocabulary lists containing sprawl
The Diary of Anne Frank
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List 3
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The Cay
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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.
See Examples For:
A big part of the problem may simply be sprawl.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 17, 2026
The loss came as such clashes are increasing, with climate change and urban sprawl bringing people closer to bears, mountain lions and other animals.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 30, 2026
Now about half a million acres are sitting dormant, and other abandoned groves have been absorbed for cattle grazing or Florida’s lucrative development sprawl.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 19, 2026
But beneath the sprawl, the movie is essentially a two-man character study.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 20, 2026
Mabel, Gerald Jr., and Harold sprawl across them, tugging a tattered wool blanket and three old quilts from each other.
From "Orphan Train" by Christina Baker Kline
The home sprawls across 14,475 square feet and is situated on a 1.47-acre lot.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 26, 2026
Disability and sickness payments in the U.K. show how the system sprawls.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 12, 2026
The luxe dwelling, which was built in 1950, is situated on a 1.5-acre lot mere feet from the beach and sprawls across 2,278 square feet.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 1, 2026
The city of Los Angeles sprawls across roughly 500 square miles, creating logistical hurdles if nothing else for a candidate seeking citywide office from a remote location, noted Democratic political consultant Mike Trujillo.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 10, 2026
Congo sprawls on the middle of the world.
From "The Poisonwood Bible" by Barbara Kingsolver
Urban planners assumed most people had cars, so metropolitan areas sprawled.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 18, 2026
Meanwhile, at a sports hall in Las Rozas de Madrid just outside the capital, the displaced sprawled on camp beds, held their heads in their hands and comforted pets as they awaited news.
From Barron's ● Jul. 27, 2026
Blue skies extended to the horizon, and a small colony of tents, camper vans and motorhomes sprawled out across the lush alfalfa fields.
From Salon ● Jun. 22, 2026
Behind the Peace River plant, sprawled out across a massive lawn, and behind a chain-link fence, were the ruins of a processing infrastructure.
From Slate ● Apr. 20, 2026
They sprawled under the park trees eating bread and cheese, but wherever they were, they talked and talked and talked.
From "The Door in the Wall" by Marguerite de Angeli
Many of the 100 items selected from the 90,000 housed in the David Bowie Centre, which was built to contain the sprawling archive, have never been seen in public.
From BBC ● Nov. 2, 2026
De La Cruz’s campaign office is a former restaurant space on a state highway in Weslaco, a sprawling town just east of McAllen.
From Slate ● Nov. 2, 2026
Unobstructed mountain views set the tone in the sprawling primary suite, which includes a spa-worthy bathroom featuring a double vanity and sky-high ceilings.
From MarketWatch ● Nov. 2, 2026
The navy is just one part of a sprawling network of maritime forces whose unpredictable operations have flummoxed Beijing’s opponents.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 2, 2026
For a moment, the three of them and the weasel were a pile of sprawling bodies and flailing limbs.
From "The House of Hades" by Rick Riordan
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
