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.
-
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.
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a straggling array of something.
verb
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(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
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the act or an instance of sprawling
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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:
But beneath the sprawl, the movie is essentially a two-man character study.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 20, 2026
Not that Oswalt always has time to sprawl out with a novel.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 19, 2026
In Lima's suburb of San Juan de Lurigancho, dusty hilltop neighbourhoods sprawl precariously down the slopes.
From BBC ● Jun. 6, 2026
Rules required minimum lot sizes of 5,750 square feet for single-family homes, and strict single-family zoning ordinances were criticized for creating sprawl.
From Barron's ● May 31, 2026
Rising four hundred feet over the night-time sprawl of modern Athens, the sheer cliffs were topped with a crown of limestone walls.
From "Blood of Olympus" by Rick Riordan
But when you walk up on his roof, a scenic view of his home city sprawls beneath Todd.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 4, 2026
It sprawls across 10,010 square feet and is the epitome of luxury thanks to its lush greenery, which makes it the perfect place for a star to seek privacy.
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 23, 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
The megastore sprawls across 150,000 square feet—triple the size of a typical store.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 14, 2026
A line of lightning sprawls over the sky and I feel the first drop on my forehead.
From "Divergent" by Veronica Roth
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
They spent hours sprawled on the deck, broiling under the daytime sun, then chilled at night, the fishermen said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 15, 2026
Size was also a theme of the event itself, which sprawled across two exhibition centers, including a monumental new complex designed by architect Zaha Hadid.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 24, 2026
There’s a desk at the head of the room, and a gigantic figure lies sprawled across its surface.
From "Kwame Crashes the Underworld" by Craig Kofi Farmer
The 5,000-square-foot home was built in 1852 and comes complete with three bedrooms, sprawling ceilings, and a private terrace.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 1, 2026
For most people, owning a vacation home is the ultimate real estate dream—but for some of Hollywood’s biggest stars, even a sprawling mansion isn’t quite private enough.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 1, 2026
The talented daughters of a 19th-century Yorkshire clergyman are at the heart of Anjet Daanje’s sprawling epic, translated from Dutch by David McKay.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 31, 2026
Rescue operations are at critical stages at several sprawling tunnels in hydropower projects, many of which the tiny Himalayan country added just in the past decade.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 31, 2026
Perhaps he hadn't fully realized the sprawling size of the woodlands.
From "Redwall" by Brian Jacques
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.
