distribute
Americanverb (used with object)
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distributes,
present (3rd person singular)
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distributed,
past participle, past
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distributing
present participle
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to divide and give out in shares; deal out; allot.
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to disperse through a space or over an area; spread; scatter.
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to promote, sell, and ship or deliver (an item or line of merchandise) to individual customers, especially in a specified region or area.
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to pass out or deliver (mail, newspapers, etc.) to intended recipients.
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to divide into distinct phases.
The process was distributed into three stages.
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to divide into classes.
These plants are distributed into 22 classes.
- Synonyms:
- categorize, arrange, sort, classify
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Logic. to employ (a term) in a proposition so as to refer to all individuals denoted by the term.
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Physical Chemistry. to dissolve uniformly in a solvent consisting of layers of immiscible or partially miscible substances.
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Printing.
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to roll out (ink) on the table to attain the proper consistency.
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to return (type) to the proper place after printing.
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verb
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to give out in shares; dispense
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to hand out or deliver
to distribute handbills
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(often passive) to spread throughout a space or area
gulls are distributed along the west coast
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(often passive) to divide into classes or categories; classify
these books are distributed in four main categories
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printing to return (used type) to the correct positions in the type case
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logic to incorporate in a distributed term of a categorial proposition
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maths logic to expand an expression containing two operators in such a way that the precedence of the operators is changed; for example, distributing multiplication over addition in a ( b + c ) yields ab + ac
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obsolete to dispense (justice)
Synonym Usage
Distribute, dispense apply to giving out something. Distribute implies apportioned, individualized giving, especially of something that is definite or limited in amount or number: The prizes were distributed among ten winners. Dispense formerly implied indiscriminate, general, and liberal giving, especially of something that was more or less indefinite or unmeasured in amount: to dispense largesse. It now applies chiefly to giving according to need or deserts, from an organized and official source: to dispense medicines and food to the victims.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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distributesimple
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distributessimple
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have distributedperfect
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has distributedperfect
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am distributingprogressive
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are distributingprogressive
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is distributingprogressive
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have been distributingperfect progressive
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has been distributingperfect progressive
Past
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distributedsimple
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had distributedperfect
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was distributingprogressive
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were distributingprogressive
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had been distributingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of distribute
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Latin distribūtus, past participle of distribuere “to divide up”; see dis- 1, tribute
Explanation
To distribute is to disperse widely, hand out, or spread around. While you're still snoozing, the paper boy is busy distributing the newspaper all over the neighborhood. This verb was first recorded in the early 15th century and has its roots in the Latin distributus, meaning “to divide.” Think of dividing up the last cookies in the cookie jar and passing them out to all your friends. Distribute can also mean to space out or arrange in a particular order — you'd want to distribute the chairs in even lines across the floor when setting up for a concert, for example.
Vocabulary lists containing distribute
Charlotte's Web
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Workshop 1, Part 1
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Essential English Vocabulary, List 6
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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:
“Rather than centralizing superintelligence, we should distribute it widely and give every person the ability to direct it,” Zuckerberg wrote.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026
"Rather than centralizing superintelligence, we should distribute it widely and give every person the ability to direct it," Zuckerberg wrote, arguing that open models are a key part of a global AI ecosystem.
From Barron's ● Aug. 11, 2026
To help those who might struggle to pay, energy companies distribute the £150 Warm Home Discount to about six million households in the winter.
From BBC ● Aug. 9, 2026
Investors must trust in the fund managers to distribute the shares—or cash—promptly.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026
She packed up food from the pantry and established a shipping system with Pedro Segundo Garcia, who sent cheese, eggs, smoked meat, fruit, and chicken from Tres Marias for her to distribute among the poor.
From "The House of the Spirits: A Novel" by Isabel Allende
The contractor operated a Maryland data center that stored public-company data that the SEC distributes for investors.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 19, 2026
The stuntmen are presumably here because their parent company, Thrill Sports, also distributes Power Slap, Dana White’s passion project.
From Slate ● Jun. 16, 2026
The firm has similar restrictions for all IPO shares it distributes.
From Barron's ● Jun. 10, 2026
The city typically mails out more than 22,000 copies to residents and distributes about 2,000 copies at city facilities.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 9, 2026
As Hobbes remarked of his friend, ‘Roberval has this peculiarity: whenever people publish any remarkable theorem they have discovered, he immediately announces, in papers which he distributes, that he discovered it first.’
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
The recalled products were distributed to grocery stores in the following 26 states.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2026
In this case, matter in the young Universe would have been distributed in unusually strong concentrations.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 11, 2026
She contrasted it with the 1999 eclipse, when more than 30 million approved glasses were distributed nationwide.
From Barron's ● Aug. 11, 2026
It isn’t only functionally efficient but morally proper that rewards for talent, hard work, risk-taking and luck are distributed proportionately to those who possess them.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026
He took his watch, his silver pencil and pad, his cigarettes and matches from the mantel and distributed them among his pockets.
From "The Heart is a Lonely Hunter" by Carson McCullers
Reforms made over the last two years mean that companies listing in London can offer fewer shares for sale, spend less on distributing company information to analysts, and face fewer hurdles in acquiring other companies.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026
The charity is already distributing more than 1,000 items a year, with numbers continuing to rise.
From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026
It’s more probable that the financial-services company is looking for confirmation that she has died so they can begin administering her account and, if appropriate, distributing any assets to the rightful beneficiaries or heirs.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 31, 2026
The theme park has made outreach into the neighborhood over the years in an attempt to assuage concerns, be it distributing fliers or attending community meetings.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026
I was answering phones, photocopying, distributing newsletters on the street.
From "Native Speaker" by Chang-rae Lee
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.
