sprawled; sprawling; sprawls
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
: to cause to spread out carelessly or awkwardly
sprawled out her books on the table
1
: an irregularly spread or scattered group or mass
a sprawl of stores and restaurants
2
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
CBS News, 23 Jan. 2026
Disco, Occasionally, the British superstar’s fourth studio album that’s been teased via a creeping, ongoing rollout with cryptic posters, a WhatsApp chat, listening sessions in indie record shops and a series of city residencies in place of a sprawling global tour.
—Jeff Benjamin, Forbes.com, 23 Jan. 2026
Julie Wraithmell, The Orlando Sentinel, 22 Jan. 2026
Alpine is just over two hours north of Big Bend National Park, a destination known for its sprawl of Chihuahuan Desert as well as the Santa Elena Canyon, carved by the Rio Grande and lined with limestone cliffs.
—Evie Carrick, Travel + Leisure, 18 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for sprawl
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Verb
Indensity adapts to real-world places—rising vertically next to communities, businesses, and high-value assets—without the sprawling land requirements of traditional grid-scale storage.
—CBS News, 23 Jan. 2026
Disco, Occasionally, the British superstar’s fourth studio album that’s been teased via a creeping, ongoing rollout with cryptic posters, a WhatsApp chat, listening sessions in indie record shops and a series of city residencies in place of a sprawling global tour.
—Jeff Benjamin, Forbes.com, 23 Jan. 2026
Noun
Our 175 award-winning state parks, remote wildlife management areas and productive state forests provide recreation opportunities for the public; habitat for wildlife; clean, abundant water for our communities; and jobs for our economy; while helping serve as a firewall against sprawl.
—Julie Wraithmell, The Orlando Sentinel, 22 Jan. 2026
Alpine is just over two hours north of Big Bend National Park, a destination known for its sprawl of Chihuahuan Desert as well as the Santa Elena Canyon, carved by the Rio Grande and lined with limestone cliffs.
—Evie Carrick, Travel + Leisure, 18 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for sprawl
Cite this Entry
“Sprawl.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sprawl. Accessed 28 Jan. 2026.
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