scatter
Americanverb (used with object)
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to throw loosely about; distribute at irregular intervals.
to scatter seeds.
- Synonyms:
- broadcast
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to separate and drive off in various directions; disperse.
to scatter a crowd.
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Physics.
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to refract or diffract (light or otherelectromagnetic radiation ) irregularly so as to diffuse in many directions.
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(of a medium) to diffuse or deflect (light or other wave phenomena) by collisions between the wave and particles of the medium.
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verb (used without object)
noun
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the act of scattering.
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something that is scattered.
verb
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(tr) to throw about in various directions; strew
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to separate and move or cause to separate and move in various directions; disperse
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to deviate or cause to deviate in many directions, as in the diffuse reflection or refraction of light
noun
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the act of scattering
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a substance or a number of objects scattered about
Synonym Usage
See sprinkle. Scatter, dispel, disperse, dissipate imply separating and driving something away so that its original form disappears. To scatter is to separate something tangible into parts at random, and drive these in different directions: The wind scattered leaves all over the lawn. To dispel is to drive away or scatter usually intangible things so that they vanish or cease to exist: Photographs of the race dispelled all doubts as to which horse won. To disperse is usually to cause a compact or organized tangible body to separate or scatter in different directions, to be reassembled if desired: Tear gas dispersed the mob. To dissipate is usually to scatter by dissolving or reducing to small atoms or parts that cannot be brought together again: He dissipated his money and his energy in useless activities.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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scattersimple
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scatterssimple
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have scatteredperfect
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has scatteredperfect
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am scatteringprogressive
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are scatteringprogressive
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is scatteringprogressive
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have been scatteringperfect progressive
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has been scatteringperfect progressive
Past
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scatteredsimple
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had scatteredperfect
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was scatteringprogressive
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were scatteringprogressive
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had been scatteringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of scatter
First recorded in 1125–75; Middle English scatere; compare Dutch schateren “to burst out laughing”
Explanation
If you hear someone shout "Everybody scatter!” that person wants everyone to spread out and leave the area. Scatter is a verb that means "to separate suddenly and spread out in different directions." Scatter is sometimes used as a noun to refer to something that has been scattered. If you have clothes strewn all over your room, you might say there is a scatter of clothes on the floor. More commonly, though, scatter is used as a verb meaning “to spread about.” You might scatter grass seed on your front lawn in the spring. Scatter can also mean “break up or disperse.” The police, for instance, might scatter an unruly mob or gathering.
Vocabulary lists containing scatter
Beowulf vocabulary
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Bronx Masquerade
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"The Earth Under Sky Bear's Feet"
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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 post-game fireworks show went awry at BMO Stadium on Friday night, when fireworks set off on the playing pitch sent flares streaming into the stands, forcing fans to scatter to safety.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 5, 2026
Spent firecrackers scatter residue that contains partially burned fuel, metal salts, additives, and pieces of charred packaging.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 4, 2026
Even when their mirrors are not pointed at the observer, the light they scatter will make each one as bright as Venus -- which is known as the "morning star", Hainaut said.
From Barron's ● Jul. 1, 2026
The diagnoses converge on one action but scatter on a good deal that matters after that, including what triggers a hike, how many more follow and where the Fed stops.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 1, 2026
There’s squeals of laughter outside the hole in the wall as the kids scatter.
From "The Knife of Never Letting Go" by Patrick Ness
The movie — which he wrote, directed and stars in — follows a widower as he scatters his wife’s ashes in very specific locations and deals with the memories that arise at each of them.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 3, 2026
By comparing the patterns in forward- and back-scattered light, they could estimate each particle's size and its refractive index, which describes how strongly light bends or scatters when it passes through a material.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 17, 2025
Martinez scatters ceramic roses across the painting, a mordant honorific to past glory and current hopes.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 9, 2025
The atmosphere scatters away more short-wave blue light, leaving the longer-wave reddish hues to project upon the Moon.
From BBC ● Oct. 4, 2025
Only a handful of sparkling silver stars that she scatters across the velvet-covered table, reading them like runes.
From "The Night Circus" by Erin Morgenstern
As for Saint Simeon's column, Arabi said "the base is there, but the remains of the column are scattered, and we will try to rebuild it".
From Barron's ● Jul. 20, 2026
These conflicts will become more common, said Hughes, as medical technology evolves, with scattered locations providing specialty care for chronic, critical and rare conditions.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 18, 2026
The resonance then scattered this planetary debris through the inner solar system, increasing the number of impacts on the Moon, Earth, Mars, and possibly other rocky worlds.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 18, 2026
Squeezed at the edge of the scene is a table with the tools of an artist scattered about—palette knife, tubes of paints, a can of brush cleaner.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 10, 2026
The humans and fairies scattered, hiding under toadstools and within the orchards.
From "The Way to Rio Luna" by Zoraida Cordova
Sri Lanka's health authorities attribute the surge in dengue infections to a cyclone that tore through the island last December, scattering debris that have turned into new breeding grounds for mosquitoes.
From BBC ● Jul. 23, 2026
By combining thermal conductivity measurements with neutron scattering data, the team was able to directly connect the dramatic increase in heat flow to changes in the atomic vibrations inside the crystal.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 11, 2026
Fireworks can frighten animals and send them scattering, but Jackie and Shadow’s eaglets apparently are made of sterner stuff.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 6, 2026
Somewhere along the line, the ideal picnic became a scattering of photogenic snacks: a baguette, a wedge of cheese, a handful of berries, perhaps a tiny jar of olives if someone was feeling ambitious.
From Salon ● Jun. 18, 2026
Over there the Mediterranean’s soft blue waves were scattering shells.
From "Habibi" by Naomi Shihab Nye
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.
