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First Known Use of spread-eagle
1826
Definition of spread-eagle
: marked by bombast and boastful exaggeration especially of the greatness of the U.S.
- spread-eagle oratory
Origin and Etymology of spread-eagle
from the spread eagle on the Great Seal of the U.S.
spread eagle
Definition of spread eagle
1
: a representation of an eagle with wings raised and legs extended
2
: something resembling or suggestive of a spread eagle;
specifically
: a skating figure executed with the skates heel to heel in a straight line
Recent Examples of spread eagle from the Web
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Espanyol striker Raul Tamudo sneaked in behind the hosts' defence and slid his attempt past the spread eagle keeper to level things up, not only in the tie but also in the title chase, however, Los Blancos held the upper hand in the head-to-head.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'spread eagle.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
First Known Use of spread eagle
1550
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