widespread

American  

[wahyd-spred] / ˈwaɪdˈsprɛd /

adjective

1. spread over or open, or occupying a wide space.

2. distributed over a wide region, or occurring in many places or among many persons or individuals.

   widespread poverty.

   Synonyms:

   far-flung, pervasive, extensive, far-reaching

---

widespread British  

/ ˈwaɪdˌsprɛd /

adjective

1. extending over a wide area

2. accepted by or occurring among many people

---

Etymology

Origin of widespread

First recorded in 1695–1705; wide + spread

Explanation

Widespread means far-reaching. For years, email was used only by computer programmers and technophiles. It was hard to imagine, back then, how widespread the phenomenon of digital communication would become. An idea that's widespread, is believed by many people, even if it's not true. A person such as Oprah, Gandhi, or Beyoncé, who has widespread popularity, is loved by many far and wide. A widespread disease is one that many people have — the flu epidemic of 1919 was deadly and widespread.

Example Sentences

By the time of that ruling the stigma attaching to sports betting had all but disappeared and widespread legalization seemed destined one way or another.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 17, 2026

The heat wave is deep, persistent and widespread, spanning from roughly San Francisco to the Mexican border.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 16, 2026

Still, for the oil shock’s impact to prove persistent and become more widespread within the U.S. economy, it would need to become embedded in consumers’ expectations around inflation—and that doesn’t appear likely.

From Barron's • Apr. 16, 2026

Because shale formations are widespread, this could have important implications for future supply.

From Science Daily • Apr. 16, 2026

The domesticated chicken is the most widespread fowl ever.

From "Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind" by Yuval Noah Harari