spread

American  

[spred] / sprɛd /

verb (used with object)

spreads, present (3rd person singular) spread, past participle, past spreading present participle

1. to draw, stretch, or open out, especially over a flat surface, as something rolled or folded (often followed byout ).

   Synonyms:

   expand, unroll, unfold

2. to stretch out or unfurl in the air, as folded wings, a flag, etc. (often followed byout ).

3. to distribute over a greater or a relatively great area of space or time (often followed byout ).

   to spread out the papers on the table.

4. to display or exhibit the full extent of; set out in full.

   He spread the pots on the ground and started hawking his wares.

5. to dispose or distribute in a sheet or layer.

   to spread hay to dry.

6. to apply in a thin layer or coating.

   to spread butter on a slice of bread.

7. to overlay or cover with something.

   She spread the blanket over her knees.

8. to set or prepare (a table), as for a meal.

9. to extend or distribute over a region, place, period of time, among a group, etc.

10. to send out, scatter, or shed in various directions, as sound, light, etc.

    Synonyms:

    radiate, diffuse, emit

11. to scatter abroad; diffuse or disseminate, as knowledge, news, disease, etc..

    to spread the word of the gospel.

    Synonyms:

    propagate, promulgate, circulate, publish, scatter, disperse

12. to move or force apart.

    He spread his arms over his head in surrender.

13. to flatten out.

    to spread the end of a rivet by hammering.

14. Phonetics.

    1. to extend the aperture between (the lips) laterally, so as to reduce it vertically, during an utterance.

    2. to delabialize.

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verb (used without object)

spreads, present (3rd person singular) spread, past participle, past spreading present participle

1. to become stretched out or extended, as a flag in the wind; expand, as in growth.

   Synonyms:

   dilate, stretch

2. to extend over a greater or a considerable area or period.

   The factory spread along the river front.

3. to be or lie outspread or fully extended or displayed, as a landscape or scene.

4. to admit of being spread or applied in a thin layer, as a soft substance.

   Margarine spreads easily.

5. to become extended or distributed over a region, as population, animals, plants, etc.

6. to become shed abroad, diffused, or disseminated, as light, influences, rumors, ideas, infection, etc.

7. to be forced apart, as the rails of a railroad track; separate.

noun

spreads plural

1. an act or instance of spreading.

   With a spread of her arms the actress acknowledged the applause.

2. expansion, extension, or diffusion.

   the spread of consumerism.

3. the extent of distribution.

   to measure the spread of branches.

   Synonyms:

   compass, reach

4. Finance.

   1. the difference between the prices bid and asked of stock or a commodity for a given time.

   2. a type of straddle in which the call price is placed above and the put price is placed below the current market quotation.

   3. the difference between any two prices or rates for related costs.

      the widening spread between lending and borrowing costs.

   4. Stock Exchange. a broker's profit, or the difference between their buying and selling price.

   5. any difference between return on assets and costs of liabilities.

5. capacity for spreading.

   the spread of an elastic material.

6. a distance or range, as between two points or dates.

   The long-distance movers planned a five-day spread between pickup and delivery.

7. a stretch, expanse, or extent of something.

   a spread of timber.

8. a cloth covering for a bed, table, or the like, especially a bedspread.

9. Informal. an abundance of food set out on a table; feast.

10. any food preparation for smearing on bread, crackers, etc., such as jam or peanut butter.

11. Aeronautics. wingspan.

12. Sometimes the spread point spread.

13. Also called layout.  Journalism. (in newspapers and magazines) an extensive, varied treatment of a subject, consisting primarily either of a number of cuts picture spread, or picture layout or of a major story and several supplementary stories, usually extending across three or more columns.

14. an advertisement, photograph, article, or the like, covering several columns, a full page, or two facing pages of a newspaper, magazine, book, etc..

    a full-page spread;

    a two-page spread.

15. two facing pages, as of a newspaper, magazine, or book.

16. landed property, as a farm or ranch.

17. lay.

adjective

1. Jewelry. (of a gem) cut with the table too large and the crown too shallow for maximum brilliance; swindled.

2. Phonetics. (of the opening between the lips) extended laterally.

idioms

1. spread oneself thin, to carry on so many projects simultaneously that none is done adequately, or that one's health suffers.

   Many college students spread themselves thin by taking on too many activities during the semester.

spread British  

/ sprɛd /

verb

1. to extend or unfold or be extended or unfolded to the fullest width

   she spread the map on the table

2. to extend or cause to extend over a larger expanse of space or time

   the milk spread all over the floor

   the political unrest spread over several years

3. to apply or be applied in a coating

   butter does not spread very well when cold

4. to distribute or be distributed over an area or region

5. to display or be displayed in its fullest extent

   the landscape spread before us

6. (tr) to prepare (a table) for a meal

7. (tr) to lay out (a meal) on a table

8. to send or be sent out in all directions; disseminate or be disseminated

   someone has been spreading rumours

   the disease spread quickly

9. (of rails, wires, etc) to force or be forced apart

10. to increase the breadth of (a part), esp to flatten the head of a rivet by pressing, hammering, or forging

11. (tr) agriculture

    1. to lay out (hay) in a relatively thin layer to dry

    2. to scatter (seed, manure, etc) over a relatively wide area

12. informal to make (oneself) agreeable to a large number of people, often of the opposite sex

13. phonetics to narrow and lengthen the aperture of (the lips) as for the articulation of a front vowel, such as ( iː ) in English see ( siː )

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noun

1. the act or process of spreading; diffusion, dispersal, expansion, etc

   the spread of the Christian religion

2. informal the wingspan of an aircraft

3. an extent of space or time; stretch

   a spread of 50 years

4. informal a ranch or relatively large tract of land

5. the limit of something fully extended

   the spread of a bird's wings

6. a covering for a table or bed

7. informal a large meal or feast, esp when it is laid out on a table

8. a food which can be spread on bread, etc

   salmon spread

9. two facing pages in a book or other publication

10. a widening of the hips and waist

    middle-age spread

11. stock exchange

    1. the difference between the bid and offer prices quoted by a market maker

    2. the excess of the price at which stock is offered for public sale over the price paid for the same stock by an underwriter

    3. a double option Compare straddle

12. jewellery the apparent size of a gemstone when viewed from above expressed in carats

    a diamond with a spread of four carats

adjective

1. extended or stretched out, esp to the fullest extent

2. (of a gem) shallow and flat

3. phonetics

   1. (of the lips) forming a long narrow aperture

   2. (of speech sounds) articulated with spread lips

      (iː) in English "feel" is a spread vowel

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• spreadability
  noun
• respread
  verb
• prespread
  verb (used with object)
• underspread
  verb (used with object)
• antispreading
  adjective
• spreadable
  adjective
• unspread
  adjective
• unspreading
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• spreads
  plural

Participles

• spreading
  present
• spread
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• spread
  simple
• spreads
  simple
• have spread
  perfect
• has spread
  perfect
• am spreading
  progressive
• are spreading
  progressive
• is spreading
  progressive
• have been spreading
  perfect progressive
• has been spreading
  perfect progressive

Past

• spread
  simple
• had spread
  perfect
• was spreading
  progressive
• were spreading
  progressive
• had been spreading
  perfect progressive

Future

• will spread
  simple
• will have spread
  perfect
• will be spreading
  progressive
• will have been spreading
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of spread

First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English verb spreden, Old English sprǣdan; cognate with Middle Dutch spreden, German spreiten

Explanation

When something is spread, it's stretched or extended as far as it can go. It's a beautiful sight to see a bald eagle spread its wings and fly. When you spread a picnic blanket on the ground, you open it and stretch it across the grass. You can also see the ocean spread out in front of you, or spread butter on toast, for example. Any way you use it, spread implies an extension across some distance, a stretching of some sort. The expression spread too thin means you are having trouble finding the time and energy to do everything in your life.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

spread spreads spreading

As populations of Aedes mosquitoes grow and spread across the U.S., researchers expect we’ll see more mosquito-borne disease outbreaks.

From Slate ● Aug. 4, 2026

He also urged people to rely solely on official information and not to "spread unverified rumours" about the motives behind the shooting or the attacker's identity.

From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026

There is a part of the market where investors will get additional yield spread.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 3, 2026

Should a fire start, there’s an increased risk that it will spread rapidly and send up a large vertical plume, which can result in erratic fire behavior, according to the weather service.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 3, 2026

Ripples spread in silent, ever-increasing circles across the smooth surface of what they all had mistaken for solid ground.

From "Rowan of Rin" by Emily Rodda

Combined with high winds, that makes for fire that spreads too quickly to be extinguished.

From Barron's ● Aug. 3, 2026

Ebola, which spreads through contact with bodily fluids, has killed 15,000 people across Africa over the last 50 years.

From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2026

Global equities are only around 1% off their recent all-time highs in early June, while European high-yield spreads are tighter and emerging market and dollar high-yield spreads are broadly the same, according to HSBC.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 29, 2026

Use extractor fans when cooking or showering because they remove warm, moist air before it spreads through the home.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 29, 2026

The song spreads from one row to the next, toward the back of the bus with the eighth graders and toward the front with the elementary kids.

From "Clairboyance" by Kristiana Kahakauwila

Artificial intelligence has helped scientists produce the first comprehensive global assessment of floating algae, revealing that blooms are spreading across much of the world's ocean.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 3, 2026

The flames were no longer spreading uncontrollably, and thousands of people were able to return to their homes.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 31, 2026

Hundreds of Turkish firefighters battled on Thursday to contain wind-fuelled wildfires spreading near key tourist regions on the country's Mediterranean coast.

From Barron's ● Jul. 31, 2026

George and Amal Clooney evacuated their 425-acre Provence wine estate in southeastern France amid the wildfires spreading across Europe.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 31, 2026

“Rockledge coyotes rock,” I say, spreading my hands like I’m revealing a marquee.

From "Wayward Creatures" by Dayna Lorentz

Related Words

• circulate
• cover
• develop
• disperse
• escalate
• expand
• extend
• flow
• increase
• lay
• multiply
• proliferate
• reach
• set
• spray
• stretch