spatter

verb spat·ter \ ˈspa-tər \

|Updated on: 13 Aug 2018

Examples: spatter in a Sentence

Definition of spatter

spattered; spattering; spatters

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

See spatter defined for English-language learners

See spatter defined for kids

Examples of spatter in a Sentence

The dog jumped in the pool and spattered us with water.
His clothes were spattered with paint.
When you cook bacon, the grease spatters everywhere.
He showed me how to use the paintbrush so the paint wouldn't spatter.

Recent Examples of spatter from the Web

Even in the face of imminent, wall-spattering death or toenail-pulling torture, the speech of Inishmoreans exudes a homogenizing prosiness.

— ben brantley, New York Times, "Orlando Bloom and Aidan Turner Are Drenched in Blood in London," 4 July 2018
Basquiat is dressed in an Armani suit, barefoot, dreadlocked, paint-spattered.

— stephen metcalf, The Atlantic, "Jean-Michel Basquiat Is Still an Enigma," 24 June 2018
Officials ordered more than 1,700 people out of Big Island communities near the lava, warning of the dangers of spattering hot rock and high levels of sulfuric gas that could threaten the elderly and people with breathing problems.

— CBS News, "Hawaii rattled by quakes as Kilauea volcano spews lava and toxic gas," 5 May 2018
Officials ordered more than 1,700 people out of Big Island communities near the lava, warning of the dangers of spattering hot rock and high levels of sulfuric gas that could threaten the elderly and people with breathing problems.

— caleb jones, BostonGlobe.com, "Hawaii braces for more quakes, lava from Kilauea volcano," 5 May 2018
Fingernail-sized hail spattered the tents for a short time as low spots in the land along the bayou filled with a few inches of water.

— michael democker, NOLA.com, "Saturday at Bayou Boogaloo: photo gallery," 19 May 2018
In the Leilani Estates area, the USGS said there are still reports of lava spattering out of the ground, but the lava flow has not advanced significantly recently.

— heidi chang, latimes.com, "New eruption at Hawaii’s Kilauea volcano sends up 30,000-foot ash plume; residents told to ‘shelter in place’," 18 May 2018
Hot vapor emerged from a crack and spattering lava began to erupt.

— CBS News, "Hawaii's Kilauea Volcano: New eruption triggers house fires," 4 May 2018
The gator chomps down and the melon splits open, spattering blue goo everywhere.

— michaela n. vincent, CNN, "People are going way over the top with their gender-reveal parties these days," 8 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'spatter.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of spatter

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

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1600

in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

See Words from the same year

spatter Synonyms

Synonyms

bespatter, dash, plash, splash, splatter;

bathe, douse (also dowse), wash, water;

slop, slush, spray, sprinkle, squirt;

spatter

noun

Definition of spatter

1 a : the act or process of spattering : the state of being spattered

b : the noise of spattering

2 a : a drop or splash spattered on something or a spot or stain due to spattering

b : a small amount or number : sprinkle

a spatter of applause

See spatter defined for English-language learners

Examples of spatter in a Sentence

There were grease spatters all over the wall.
The floor was covered with spatters of paint.
There was a lot of paint spatter on the floor.

Recent Examples of spatter from the Web

There is some intermittent spatter but no substantial lava flow.

— CBS News, "New lava fissure opens as Hawaii awaits explosive eruption," 13 May 2018
In the Leilani Estates Subdivision, fissure 7 was active for several hours on May 5 with large bubble bursts and spatter.

— don sweeney, sacbee, "Rivers of lava in Hawaii produce amazing photos — and a warning: Please don't die | The Sacramento Bee," 7 May 2018
The Peterson case also relied heavily on the testimony of an expert in blood spatter analysis, a form of science that has come under scrutiny in recent years.

— andrea valdez, WIRED, "Top Stories in June 2018: An Alternate Theory About 'The Staircase'," 30 June 2018
Police noted the fresh paint in the kitchen, found more blood spatter on the kitchen ceiling, and documented the strong odor of cleaning chemicals that Tucker had admitted to using afterward, the report states.

— josh kovner, courant.com, "Hamden Man Said He Beat Mother, Burned Her Body For 8 Hours," 11 June 2018
This special ends better for Peterson; in the years since Peterson’s trial, the state’s blood spatter analyst Duane Deaver is discovered to be a fraud, having fabricated information about dozens of cases throughout his career.

— rachel syme, The New Republic, "How The Staircase Defined True Crime Series," 11 June 2018
Oozing red rivers of lava have slowly made their way across the region surrounding the volcano on Hawaii's Big Island, while fountains of molten rock dance and spatter around the erupting fissures.

— National Geographic, "Why Blue Flames Are Now Burning at Kilauea," 24 May 2018
That person, identified only as a homeowner on Noni Farms Road, shattered his leg from his shin to his foot when lava spatter struck him, a spokeswoman for the Hawaii County Mayor Harry Kim, according to Reuters.

— amy b wang, chicagotribune.com, "Lava spatter hits Hawaii man and shatters his leg in first known injury from Kilauea volcano," 20 May 2018
That person, identified only as a homeowner on Noni Farms Road, shattered his leg from his shin to his foot when lava spatter struck him, a spokeswoman for the Hawaii County Mayor Harry Kim, according to Reuters.

— amy b wang, ajc, "Lava spatter hits Hawaii man and shatters his leg in first known injury from Kilauea volcano," 20 May 2018