splatter
Americanverb (used with or without object)
-
splatters,
present (3rd person singular)
-
splattered,
past participle, past
-
splattering
present participle
noun
-
splatters
plural
-
an act or instance of splattering.
-
the quantity splattered.
to wipe up a splatter of ketchup on the rug.
adjective
verb
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
splattersimple
-
splatterssimple
-
have splatteredperfect
-
has splatteredperfect
-
am splatteringprogressive
-
are splatteringprogressive
-
is splatteringprogressive
-
have been splatteringperfect progressive
-
has been splatteringperfect progressive
Past
-
splatteredsimple
-
had splatteredperfect
-
was splatteringprogressive
-
were splatteringprogressive
-
had been splatteringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of splatter
Explanation
In horror movies, you'll see a lot of blood splattering on walls. Ick. To splatter is to splash liquid. A splatter is also the spot the liquid makes. When you spill some liquid on the ground, the sound it makes is splat. Splash a lot of it, and you have a splatter — drops of the liquid across a large area. If you are frying meat in a hot pan, the grease will splatter across the stove and counter near it. In the figurative use, gossip about a celebrity's mishaps is often splattered throughout a gossip magazine like spilled milk on a floor.
Vocabulary lists containing splatter
Holes
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A Thousand Splendid Suns
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Salt to the Sea
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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:
The remarkable Ms. Weaving is a contender for Australian Scream Queen, but few would expect Mr. Segel, a Judd Apatow mainstay, to star in a splatter comedy.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
He noted the amount of paint splatter on Islas was uncommon for the weapon’s marking cartridges.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 19, 2026
Yet, it’s disappointment that Perkins serves up most frequently in “The Monkey,” detouring from every wide-open chance to showcase depth and humanity in favor of juvenile humor and gross-out splatter gags.
From Salon ● Feb. 21, 2025
There was no trace of Yablonka, including any blood splatter.
From Seattle Times ● Nov. 30, 2023
I shut my eyes, thinking I’m about to fall into who knows what and possibly splatter on the bottom, but I’m not falling.
From "The Manifestor Prophecy" by Angie Thomas
The splatters emphasized the pair’s vision for a band teetering between the beautiful and the grotesque.
From New York Times ● Mar. 21, 2024
Next comes the primal sight - a full and swinging delivery from Wood that splatters the stumps.
From BBC ● Jul. 6, 2023
Thomas says a backsplash can add visual interest to your kitchen and protect your walls from spills and splatters.
From Seattle Times ● Jun. 9, 2023
He described a vision of a painting he wanted to do with paint splatters, but he had never heard of Jackson Pollock.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 9, 2023
It has all sorts of colorful paint designs on it: paint splatters, handprints, circles, hearts, rainbows.
From "A Soft Place to Land" by Janae Marks
Three years ago, FX’s “The Bear” splattered across our screens and made it impossible to look away.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 27, 2025
BBC correspondent, Paul Clifton, the first reporter to get to the scene shortly after the incident, said the three stones closest to the public path were "splattered" with the powder.
From BBC ● Jun. 19, 2024
The trailers, crafted by Pierson and her wife, have their own unique 70s-era decor that includes yellow and orange curtains, bright furniture and color walls including one splattered with orange lava lamp shapes.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 3, 2024
Several thousand people attended the event, with some reportedly holding signs splattered with fake blood, urging the government to “honor the treaty.”
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 4, 2024
The seconds slithered forward until Fig’s dinner splattered onto the carpet in a pile of brownish sludge.
From "Sir Fig Newton and the Science of Persistence" by Sonja Thomas
"There are thousands of them together, all coughing and splattering," Bamford said, adding that the seals are also particularly "snotty".
From Barron's ● Nov. 13, 2025
But for those not yet comfortable with high-heat cooking, this can lead to issues — like smoke filling your kitchen or, worse, a fire from oil or fat splattering in the pan.
From Salon ● Feb. 21, 2025
Removing the moisture minimizes splattering as they fry.
From Washington Times ● Sep. 12, 2023
Two women masquerading as crowd control officers hurled raw eggs at Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II as she rode in an open car today, splattering her pink coat with yellow yolk, police said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 9, 2022
They were so realistic, he could even hear water splattering onto the flames.
From "The House of the Scorpion" by Nancy Farmer
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.
