Main Entry: ¹scat·ter

Pronunciation: \ˈska-tər\

Function: verb

Etymology: Middle English scateren, schateren to disperse, break up, destroy; akin to Middle Dutch schaderen to scatter

Date: 14th century

transitive verb 1 a : to cause to separate widely b : to cause to vanish
2 archaic : to fling away heedlessly : squander
3 : to distribute irregularly
4 : to sow by casting in all directions : strew
5 a : to reflect irregularly and diffusely b : to cause (a beam of radiation) to diffuse or disperse
6 : to divide into ineffectual small portionsintransitive verb 1 : to separate and go in various directions : disperse
2 : to occur or fall irregularly or at random

— scat·ter·er \-tər-ər\ noun

synonyms scatter, disperse, dissipate, dispel mean to cause to separate or break up. scatter implies a force that drives parts or units irregularly in many directions <the bowling ball scattered the pins>. disperse implies a wider separation and a complete breaking up of a mass or group <police dispersed the crowd>. dissipate stresses complete disintegration or dissolution and final disappearance <the fog was dissipated by the morning sun>. dispel stresses a driving away or getting rid of as if by scattering <an authoritative statement that dispelled all doubt>.