Main Entry: ¹spat·ter

Pronunciation: \ˈspa-tər\

Function: verb

Etymology: akin to Frisian spatterje to spatter, Middle Dutch bespatten to splash

Date: 1600

intransitive verb : to spurt forth in scattered drops <blood spattering everywhere>transitive verb 1 : to splash with or as if with a liquid; also : to soil in this way <his coat was spattered with mud>
2 : to scatter by or as if by splashing <spatter water>
3 : to cover with or as if with splashes or spots
4 : to cast aspersions on : defame <spattered my reputation>