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
Orlando Sentinel Staff, The Orlando Sentinel, 12 Mar. 2026
It’s been months since contract negotiations broke down, leaving thousands of Florida Blue policyholders squeezed out of medical care provided by the two sprawling Broward hospital districts’ 11 hospitals and caregiver networks.
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 12 Mar. 2026
Natalia Sánchez Loayza, Scientific American, 13 Mar. 2026
This Dickensian narrative sprawl allows Mendonça Filho to render his villains in the same Technicolor.
—Michael Snyder, The Atlantic, 13 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for sprawl
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Verb
On this week’s episode of Talking Central Florida, Molly Duerig, environment reporter for Central Florida Public Media, and Abe Aboraya from the Oviedo Community News discuss the legal and philosophical battle over rural boundaries and other policies designed to limit sprawling development.
—Orlando Sentinel Staff, The Orlando Sentinel, 12 Mar. 2026
It’s been months since contract negotiations broke down, leaving thousands of Florida Blue policyholders squeezed out of medical care provided by the two sprawling Broward hospital districts’ 11 hospitals and caregiver networks.
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 12 Mar. 2026
Noun
Nowhere in the vestiges of what was once the sprawl of corporate hugeness known as The General Electric Company are there signs that Katharine Blodgett's laboratory notebooks still exist.
—Natalia Sánchez Loayza, Scientific American, 13 Mar. 2026
This Dickensian narrative sprawl allows Mendonça Filho to render his villains in the same Technicolor.
—Michael Snyder, The Atlantic, 13 Mar. 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 14 Mar. 2026.
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