splay

1 of 3

verb

ˈsplā 

splayed; splaying; splays

transitive verb

1

: to cause to spread outward

2

: to make oblique : bevel

intransitive verb

1

: to extend apart or outward especially in an awkward manner

2

: slope, slant

splay

2 of 3

noun

1

: a slope or bevel especially of the sides of a door or window

2

: spread, expansion

splay

3 of 3

adjective

1

: turned outward

splay knees

2

: awkward, ungainly

Examples of splay in a Sentence

Verb

He sat with his legs splayed apart.

She splayed her fingers to show off her manicure.

His fingers splayed out over the table as he steadied himself.

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

During this particularly artsy weekend, more than 600 artists turn the streets of downtown Lake Worth Beach into a temporary open-air museum with larger-than-life chalk murals splayed across Lake and Lucerne Avenues. —Skye Sherman, Southern Living, 22 Dec. 2025

Compacted into 137 bundles, that steel had to be meticulously splayed out in order to successfully loop around the roadbed, just before the Yerba Buena Tunnel. —Katie Lauer, Mercury News, 22 Dec. 2025

Noun

The design delivers unsurpassed toe splay, enforced by the separate toe pockets, and a close-to-the-ground, near-barefoot ride. —Jonathan Beverly, Outside Online, 23 June 2025

My students’ affront felt as sensible to me as expecting anatomy classes to flag each splay of flesh. —Literary Hub, 17 June 2025

Adjective

Our thoughts went back to the splay-foot tracks. —Bob Cary, Outdoor Life, 15 Oct. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English splaien "to unfurl, spread out, spread-eagle, split (a fish) lengthwise and lay open," aphetic form of displaien "to unfurl (a banner), spread (the arms), display entry 1"

Noun

derivative of splay entry 1

Adjective

derivative of splay entry 1

First Known Use

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Noun

circa 1508, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

1548, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for splay

• ay
• bay
• bey
• brae
• cay
• chez
• dey
• dray
• fay
• fey
• flay
• fray

Kids Definition

splay

verb

ˈsplā

: to spread out or apart

a colt with legs splayed out