spread out

phrasal verb

spread out; spreading out; spreads out

: to open, arrange, or place (something) over a large area

He spread out the map on the table.

He spread the cards out on the table.

The cards were spread out across the table.

: to be open, arranged, or extended over a large area

The city is spread out over a wide area.

: to move (parts of the body) outward or away from each other

Spread your arms out.

There's no room on the couch to spread yourself out.

: to divide up (something) over a period of time or among members of a group

They spread the work out among the committee members.

The course is spread out over two semesters.

: to move apart from the other members of a group especially to search an area

The police spread out to search the area faster.

Examples of spread out in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The Tortured Poets Department has spread out once again. —

Larisha Paul, Rolling Stone, 17 May 2024 The Nuggets have elected to spread out the defense more during Jokic’s rest minutes by surrounding Gordon with four shooters. —

Bennett Durando, The Denver Post, 14 May 2024 The three-story residence has seven bedrooms and eight baths spread out over 12,078 square feet, along with a separate guest house and three outdoor fireplaces. —

Demetrius Simms, Robb Report, 10 May 2024 The programming for the Palm Springs fest is spread out so that after one film on opening night, there are four films a day on Friday and Saturday, and three on Sunday — adding up to that most oxymoronic of festival experiences: a relaxed marathon. —

Chris Willman, Variety, 6 May 2024 San Jose’s festivities were spread out over two days, beginning Saturday with a car show near the SAP Center and salsa dancing festival, and culminating on Sunday with two parades in downtown and East San Jose. —

Kate Talerico, The Mercury News, 5 May 2024 The spacious, contemporary Earth Suites mean families have plenty of stylish space to spread out. —

Lindsay Cohn, Travel + Leisure, 2 May 2024 Unlike in seasons past when performances were spread out over a week to give singers time for vocal rest between shows, the performances will be presented on three consecutive days. —

Pam Kragen, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 May 2024 With the first option, the jackpot amount is spread out over 30 years as an annual payment. —

Raphael Romero Ruiz, The Arizona Republic, 5 May 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'spread out.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.