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View synonyms for sprawl

sprawl

[ sprawl ]

verb (used without object)

  1. to be stretched or spread out in an unnatural or ungraceful manner:

    The puppy's legs sprawled in all directions.

  2. to sit or lie in a relaxed position with the limbs spread out carelessly or ungracefully:

    He sprawled across the bed.

  3. to spread out, extend, or be distributed in a straggling or irregular manner, as vines, buildings, handwriting, etc.

    Synonyms: branch, straggle

  4. to crawl awkwardly with the aid of all the limbs; scramble.


verb (used with object)

  1. to stretch out (the limbs) as in sprawling.
  2. to spread out or distribute in a straggling manner.

noun

  1. the act or an instance of sprawling; a sprawling posture.
  2. a straggling array of something.

sprawl

/ sprɔːl /

verb

  1. intr to sit or lie in an ungainly manner with one's limbs spread out
  2. to fall down or knock down with the limbs spread out in an ungainly way
  3. to spread out or cause to spread out in a straggling fashion

    his handwriting sprawled all over the paper

“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


noun

  1. the act or an instance of sprawling
  2. a sprawling posture or arrangement of items
    1. the urban area formed by the expansion of a town or city into surrounding countryside

      the urban sprawl

    2. the process by which this has happened
“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
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Derived Forms

  • ˈsprawler, noun
  • ˈsprawly, adjective
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Other Words From

  • sprawler noun
  • sprawling·ly adverb
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Word History and Origins

Origin of sprawl1

before 1000; Middle English spraulen to move awkwardly, Old English spreawlian; cognate with Frisian (N dial.) spraweli
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Word History and Origins

Origin of sprawl1

Old English spreawlian; related to Old English spryttan to sprout, spurt , Greek speirein to scatter
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Example Sentences

During the 1980s, urban sprawl and increased outdoor recreation meant that humans and bears were interacting more and more.

Depending on who you ask, it represents sprawl or badly needed units that will satisfy the city’s larger housing goals.

Martinek also said he believes there is enough space for infill development throughout the city that will help Oceanside meet its housing requirements rather than a project that contributes to urban sprawl.

One of the major problems was that the county allowed sprawl developers to offset projects by purchasing carbon offsets in international markets, which have little oversight or accountability.

In 2009, county planners rejected the project, saying it was out of step with the county’s plan to concentrate housing development in village areas, rather than maintaining the county’s patterns of sprawl.

“To minimize sprawl” has become a bedrock catchphrase of the core political ideology.

Obama and the Democrats have embraced the argument that suburbs and sprawl are bad for you.

Auto factories tend to sprawl horizontally over huge lots, and have flat roofs.

The goal, of course, is to facilitate ever more densification of urban areas and to rein in the dreaded suburban “sprawl.”

And when it comes to muddling through the ever-expanding sprawl of the Internet, you can never have too many tricks.

The grass still made a carpet over its roots, inviting me to sprawl at full length and renew our voiceless communion.

The black man sprang high up into the air, and shot out both his arms and his legs, coming down all a-sprawl among the heather.

The movement had stopped, and he was allowed to sprawl on the ground.

This paragon, though seventy years old, used to dress in baby's clothes and sprawl about upon the floor.

Even the multiplication table failed here, and at this, variously a-sprawl on the turf beneath, the smaller fry giggled.

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