sprawl

verb \ ˈsprȯl \

|Updated on: 11 Aug 2018

Examples: sprawl in a Sentence

Definition of sprawl

sprawled; sprawling; sprawls

intransitive verb

1 a archaic : to lie thrashing or tossing about

b : to creep or clamber awkwardly

2 : to lie or sit with arms and legs spread out

3 : to spread or develop irregularly or without restraint

bushes sprawling along the road

sprawling suburbs

a sprawling narrative

transitive verb

: to cause to spread out carelessly or awkwardly

sprawled out her books on the table

See sprawl defined for English-language learners

See sprawl defined for kids

Examples of sprawl in a Sentence

The kids sprawled on the floor to watch TV.
She tripped and went sprawling into the table.
The city sprawls along the coastline.
The bushes were sprawling along the road.

Recent Examples of sprawl from the Web

This sprawling 3,300-acre resort along the Deschutes River was once a World War II training facility and has its own observatory.

— megan michelson, Outside Online, "These Are the Best Stargazing Spots in North America," 13 July 2018
The Detroit area boasts two major testing sites for autonomous vehicles, sprawling compounds of interstates, guardrails, and mock pedestrians and bicyclists that companies and researchers use to test their technology.

— New York Times, "Trump’s Trade War With China Pierces the Heart of Michigan," 12 July 2018
The building, initially constructed in the 1930s and expanded over the years, was one of the busiest on Ohio State's sprawling campus.

— CBS News, ""A gauntlet of sexual deviancy": Ex-athletes describe lewd atmosphere at Ohio State," 12 July 2018
Nearly 800 miles to the northwest, in El Paso, dozens of migrants, some with children in tow, arrive daily at migrant hospitality centers organized by Annunciation House, an agency that runs a migrant shelter in the sprawling border city.

— juan montes, WSJ, "Migrants Keep Crossing Southern U.S. Border, Undeterred by Risks," 19 June 2018
The New Braunfels shop can handle 562 people, according to the fire marshal, mostly on big wooden picnic tables sprawled across concrete floors.

— mike sutter, San Antonio Express-News, "52 Weeks of BBQ: Cooper’s Old Time Pit Bar-B-Que," 13 July 2018
The group had entered the sprawling Tham Luang cave in northern Thailand to go exploring after soccer practice on June 23 when monsoon rains filled the tight passageways, blocking their escape.

— Anchorage Daily News, "With V-for-Victory sign, rescued Thai boys celebrate freedom," 12 July 2018
The Leopold show contrasts a 1910 portrait of Schnitzler and his family sprawling across the same striped Biedermeier sofa as Karl and his family five years later, as though these social opposites lived in the same place.

— j.s. marcus, WSJ, "Faces of Old Vienna," 12 July 2018
The group had entered the sprawling Tham Luang cave to go exploring after soccer practice on June 23, but monsoon rains soon filled the tight passageways, blocking their escape.

— kaweewit kaewjinda, BostonGlobe.com, "Kids rescued in Thailand lost weight, drank dripping water in cave," 11 July 2018

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