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outspread

[verb out-spred; adjective out-spred; noun out-spred]
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verb (used with or without object), out·spread, out·spread·ing.
  1. to spread out; extend: an eagle outspreading its wings.
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adjective
  1. spread out; stretched out: outspread arms.
  2. diffused abroad; widely disseminated: The outspread news had traveled quickly.
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noun
  1. the act of spreading out; expansion: the rapid outspread of the early American colonists.
  2. something that is spread out; an expanse: a vast outspread of rich farmland.
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Origin of outspread

1300–50; Middle English outspredden (v.). See out-, spread
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for outspread

Historical Examples

  • Happy the man who sees from either aspect the glory of these outspread wings.

    Howards End

    E. M. Forster

  • He rose with outspread arms and the tears on his face and his voice broke.

    Despair's Last Journey

    David Christie Murray

  • At Passy we were received with shrugging shoulders and outspread hands.

    Dross

    Henry Seton Merriman

  • With outspread wings he flew in large circles over Heidi's head.

    Heidi

    Johanna Spyri

  • Jessop, with staring eyes and outspread hands, backed to the wall.

    The Opal Serpent

    Fergus Hume

British Dictionary definitions for outspread

outspread

verb (ˌaʊtˈsprɛd) -spreads, -spreading or -spread
  1. to spread out or cause to spread out
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adjective (ˈaʊtˈsprɛd)
  1. spread or stretched out
  2. scattered or diffused widely
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noun (ˈaʊtˌsprɛd)
  1. a spreading out
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Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012