sprawl

1 of 2

verb

ˈsprȯl 

sprawled; sprawling; sprawls

intransitive verb

1

: to lie or sit with arms and legs spread out

2

: to spread or develop irregularly or without restraint

bushes sprawling along the road

sprawling suburbs

a sprawling narrative

3

a

: to creep or clamber awkwardly

b

archaic : to lie thrashing or tossing about

transitive verb

: to cause to spread out carelessly or awkwardly

sprawled out her books on the table

sprawl

2 of 2

noun

1

: an irregularly spread or scattered group or mass

a sprawl of stores and restaurants

2

: urban sprawl

3

: the act, posture, or condition of sprawling

Examples of sprawl in a Sentence

Verb

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 on the Web

Verb

Entire neighborhoods were inundated and the drainage network swamped after over 12 inches of rain fell during two or three days last week, or nearly as much as the sprawling low-lying city usually gets in all of September. — Reuters, NBC news, 28 Sep. 2026

Atlanta, the sprawling southern metropolis, is used to serving as a temporary home for the rare black-and-white bears. — Eduardo Cuevas, CNN Money, 28 Sep. 2026

Noun

And Cloud Sprawl One investment that often looks efficient on paper is AI and cloud sprawl. — Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 23 Sep. 2026

Frankel feels for anyone looking for The One in the Magic City, which maintains a worldwide rep of being shallow and materialistic (despite much of the city being suburban sprawl). — Madeleine Marr, Miami Herald, 22 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English, from Old English sprēawlian

First Known Use

Verb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 3b

Noun

1598, in the meaning defined at sense 3

Phrases Containing sprawl

• urban sprawl

Rhymes for sprawl

• ahl
• all
• aul
• bawl
• brawl
• call
• caul
• crawl
• dol
• doll
• drawl
• fall

Kids Definition

sprawl

verb

ˈsprȯl

1

: to lie or sit with arms and legs spread out

sprawled on the couch watching TV

2

: to spread out in an uneven or awkward way

a sprawling city

sprawl noun