scatters 1 of 2

Definition of scattersnext
plural of scatter

scatters

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of scatter
1
2
as in sprays
to cover by or as if by scattering something over or on the hillside was scattered with boulders deposited by the last ice age

Synonyms & Similar Words

3
as in dissipates
to go off in different directions and cease to exist as a body or unified whole these drunken revelers will quickly scatter when the police arrive

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of scatters
Noun
Even a hit isn’t clean—some materials are highly reflective, meaning laser energy bounces off the drone and scatters, potentially causing blinding. Deni Ellis Béchard, Scientific American, 13 Feb. 2026 The Problem of Bureaucracy in Scaling Enterprises Business expansion scatters work across codebases, project management tools, chat platforms, and docs. Daniel Fusch, USA Today, 11 Dec. 2025 Their innovation, called retina E-paper, uses nanoparticles to control how light scatters, achieving lifelike color reproduction that can be tuned electrically. Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 24 Oct. 2025 Weed scatters and falls between the wood slats. Matthew Shen Goodman, Harpers Magazine, 19 Sep. 2025
Verb
As the light journeys along the fiber, little by little, some scatters off the glass molecules themselves and is lost. John Ballato, The Conversation, 24 Mar. 2026 But Orlandoans who, in years to come, will see and admire the graceful little tree that scatters yellow blooms in the Leu gardens, will know of one that did. Orlando Sentinel Staff, The Orlando Sentinel, 16 Mar. 2026 Cosmos is a low-maintenance annual that grows quickly and scatters seed widely. Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 9 Mar. 2026 Most of the data simply scatters into the void. Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 3 Mar. 2026 The only light that can reach it is filtered through Earth's atmosphere, which scatters short wavelengths of light and bends longer red wavelengths inward. Jamie Carter, Space.com, 27 Feb. 2026 This reddish color, often referred to as a blood moon, happens because Earth's atmosphere scatters sunlight, allowing the longer-wavelength red light to reach the moon. Tiffany Acosta, AZCentral.com, 26 Feb. 2026 Humans also see such a bright blue because the clear water absorbs red wavelengths and scatters blue light back to our eyes. Lydia Mansel, Travel + Leisure, 25 Feb. 2026 The remaining light that does reach the Moon is filtered through Earth's atmosphere, which scatters shorter wavelengths and allows red and orange tones to pass through. ABC News, 25 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for scatters
Noun
  • With models trailed by porters toting handfuls of monogrammed luggage?
    Rosie Jarman, Vogue, 16 Mar. 2026
  • Sprinkle a few handfuls of wood ashes around your hydrangea in early spring and water it in.
    Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 4 Feb. 2026
Verb
  • Wind disperses seeds from some plants to perpetuate the species.
    Sheryl De Vore, Chicago Tribune, 16 Mar. 2026
  • If frozen molecules can survive within these dusty structures, they may later be released into the interstellar medium as the nebula disperses, contributing complex material to future generations of stars and planetary systems.
    Rupendra Brahambhatt, Interesting Engineering, 15 Mar. 2026
Verb
  • When it is finished, maybe a year from now, Bayfront Park will be the city’s front yard, a gathering place to celebrate culture and be dazzled by technology -- laser beams that shoot into the evening sky and a fountain that sprays 60 feet high.
    Miami Herald Archives, Miami Herald, 27 Mar. 2026
  • Vicks Sinex Severe, for example, sprays an ultrafine mist that is less likely to irritate your nostrils with its residue.
    BestReviews, Chicago Tribune, 18 Mar. 2026
Verb
  • The result is shaking that can last far longer than on Earth because seismic energy dissipates slowly in the moon's fractured interior.
    Samantha Mathewson, Space.com, 24 Mar. 2026
  • Whatever wholesome energy might have accumulated in the air from that exchange dissipates as soon as we’re thrown back in the galley.
    Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 24 Mar. 2026
Noun
  • For couples, Sandals Royal Plantation, Sandals Dunn’s River, and Excellence Oyster Bay won’t disappoint.
    Beth Luberecki, USA Today, 1 Apr. 2026
  • One is 1969’s Paul Mazursky comedy, Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice in which two couples wind up over their heads in stretching the moral limits of their relationships in an ever-changing society.
    Pete Hammond, Deadline, 31 Mar. 2026
Verb
  • But for every shirt bearing a slogan, there were ten cheeks covered in (biodegradable) glitter like the kind that Diggins sprinkles on her face before every race.
    Bill McKibben, New Yorker, 24 Mar. 2026
  • Groff sprinkles this punchy, athletic syntax over a slew of intricate settings.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 23 Feb. 2026
Verb
  • Under certain conditions, the distinction between them disappears entirely.
    Georgina Jedikovska, Interesting Engineering, 27 Mar. 2026
  • The gap between data and action is where AI value disappears.
    Matt Emma, USA Today, 25 Mar. 2026
Verb
  • Barnett dots up Knight for a 57-yard catch-and-run.
    Caleb Yum, Austin American Statesman, 28 Oct. 2025
  • Rather than the stiff alien chitchat that dots his own screenplays, the characters in The Favourite trade the witty, venomous bon mots of The Great creator Tony McNamara.
    A.A. Dowd, Vulture, 24 Oct. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Scatters.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scatters. Accessed 1 Apr. 2026.

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