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scat·ter | \ ˈska-tər 
\
\scattered; scattering; scatters
Definition of scatter
(Entry 1 of 2)
1a : to cause to separate widely
b : to cause to vanish
3 : to distribute irregularly
4 : to sow by casting in all directions : strew
5a : to reflect irregularly and diffusely
b : to cause (a beam of radiation) to diffuse or disperse
6 : to divide into ineffectual small portions
1 : to separate and go in various directions : disperse
2 : to occur or fall irregularly or at random
scatter
nounDefinition of scatter (Entry 2 of 2)
1 : the act of scattering
2 : a small quantity or number irregularly distributed or strewn about : scattering
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Other Words from scatter
Verb
scatterer \ ˈska-tər-ər \ noun
\ nounSynonyms & Antonyms for scatter
Synonyms: Verb
Synonyms: Noun
Antonyms: Verb
Antonyms: Noun
- army,
- crowd,
- flock,
- gazillion,
- horde,
- host,
- jillion,
- kazillion,
- legion,
- loads,
- many,
- mountain,
- multitude,
- oodles,
- scads,
- thousands,
- zillion
Examples of scatter in a Sentence
Verb
The wind scattered the pile of leaves.
The marbles scattered across the floor.
She scattered the books on the table.
He scatters his toys all around the house. Noun
played before only a scatter of spectators in that huge stadium
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Recent Examples on the Web: Verb Outside, tables are scattered around a fenced lot, interspersed with succulents and oak trees.
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Nina Sovich, WSJ, "Austin Getaway: A Grown-Up’s Guide to the Cool-Kid City," 15 Jan. 2020 At the time of her death, her papers were scattered around the country.
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Washington Post, "New book shares early stories written by Zora Neale Hurston," 15 Jan. 2020 Funfetti is the classic sugar cookie dough scattered with candy sprinkles, while the rich brownie batter is a chocoholic’s dream.
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Mary Honkus, PEOPLE.com, "Edible Funfetti Cookie Dough Is Already the Greatest Invention of 2020," 15 Jan. 2020 Park areas would also be scattered throughout the subdivision.
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Alec Johnson, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "A new 82-lot subdivision has taken a step forward in Mequon," 15 Jan. 2020 The blue of a daytime sky is scattered away from your sight, while warmer reds and yellows become more prominent.
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Aj Willingham, CNN, "Bushfire heroes, a double twin story and an entertaining cuttlefish," 11 Jan. 2020 The plane's wreckage was scattered over a quarter-mile area.
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USA Today, "Calm after Iran missile strikes, then a fiery plane crash. Here's how the horror unfolded," 11 Jan. 2020 More of it is scattered through the atmosphere, reducing the overall intensity of direct light and thus increasing the amount of reflected light.
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Harry Guinness, Popular Science, "Light your photos like a pro," 9 Jan. 2020 The towers for Dallas/Forth Worth TV stations are in Cedar Hill, but their viewers are scattered all over northeast Texas.
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Jim Rossman, Dallas News, "Cord cutters: Do you know where to aim your antenna?," 9 Jan. 2020 Recent Examples on the Web: Noun Onstage that year, a young Ella Fitzgerald forgot the words to her song, and the best scatter to ever live was born.
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New York Times, "Film: Tender Mercies in LaBeouf’s ‘Honey Boy’," 1 Nov. 2019 But unlike glass, a ceramic scatters this light instead of absorbing it.
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Sophie Bushwick, Scientific American, "New Technique Welds Ceramics with Lasers," 24 Nov. 2019 Then a flurry of waltzing snowflakes scatters across the stage.
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Phillip Valys, sun-sentinel.com, "Winter forecast: 100 percent chance of (fake) snow in Fort Lauderdale, Miami, West Palm Beach," 19 Nov. 2019 Senat visits the house during the day, but he and his family scatter by nightfall.
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Eileen Kelley, sun-sentinel.com, "Burglar gets more than he bargained for: A homeowner with a machete, cops say," 6 Nov. 2019 The guards and officials all scatter, along with the other prisoner.
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Washington Post, "Lawyer: Honduran government could be behind prison murder," 29 Oct. 2019 Rhyme, which Howe scatters throughout the book, provides another.
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Dan Chiasson, The New Yorker, "Fanny Howe Makes Sense of Beginnings and Endings," 30 Sep. 2019 An ear of Mexican-style street corn hit the San Antonio sweet spot with queso fresco and tangy mayo, but most of all a crunchy scatter of Flamin’ Hot Cheetos.
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Mike Sutter, ExpressNews.com, "Review: Lucy Cooper’s Ice House at the top of San Antonio’s bar food scene," 12 Sep. 2019 Roughly chop the remaining 1/4 cup (25 grams) pistachios and scatter over the top.
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Becky Krystal, The Denver Post, "With their powers combined, strawberries, pistachios and olive oil make for one splendid cake," 4 Sep. 2019
See MoreThese example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'scatter.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for scatter
scatter
verbEnglish Language Learners Definition of scatter
(Entry 1 of 2)
: to cause (things or people) to separate and go in different directions
: to separate and go in different directions
: to place or leave (things) in different places
scatter
nounEnglish Language Learners Definition of scatter (Entry 2 of 2)
: a small number or group of things placed or found apart from each other
See the full definition for scatter in the English Language Learners Dictionary
scatter
verbscat·ter | \ ˈska-tər \
\scattered; scattering
Kids Definition of scatter
1 : to toss, sow, or place here and there
He scattered his toys all around the house.
2 : to separate or cause to separate and go in different ways
The crowd suddenly scattered.
scatter
transitive verbscat·ter | \ ˈskat-ər \
\Medical Definition of scatter
(Entry 1 of 2)
: to cause (a beam of radiation) to diffuse or disperse
scatter
nounMedical Definition of scatter (Entry 2 of 2)
1 : the act of scattering
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The first known use of scatter was in the 14th century
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