as in spread
to cause to move outward and apart
He sat with his legs splayed apart. She splayed her fingers to show off her manicure.
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Recent Examples of splayed
Due to the blunt force of this reentry, the engines in the outer ring of the rocket wanted to get splayed out, the company's chief of propulsion at the time, Tom Mueller, told me for the book Reentry.
—
Eric Berger, ArsTechnica, 28 Aug. 2025
Neither do the police, nor the Ring cameras affixed to the facades on several neighborhood homes, though at least the latter capture footage of kids bounding through their front doors, arms splayed like wings, into early morning’s opaque embrace.
—Andy Crump, Time, 9 Aug. 2025
Eric Berger, ArsTechnica, 28 Aug. 2025
Neither do the police, nor the Ring cameras affixed to the facades on several neighborhood homes, though at least the latter capture footage of kids bounding through their front doors, arms splayed like wings, into early morning’s opaque embrace.
—Andy Crump, Time, 9 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for splayed
Verb
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More interestingly, the staff begins to spread its wings when granted opportunities to report.—
Michael M. Rosen,
The Washington Examiner,
12 Sep. 2025
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Blending ancient Vedic verses and Indian classical traditions with vibrant instrumentation and choral arrangements, Soul Ecstasy is part of Tandon’s mission of spreading joy through both economic and emotional empowerment.—
Billboard Staff,
Billboard,
12 Sep. 2025
Verb
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One of the popular ways to experience the park is through Jeep tours that can also give you a few of the flowers scattered across the terrain.—
Iona Brannon,
Travel + Leisure,
9 Sep. 2025
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But when workflows are scattered across several tools or bogged down by complicated rules, users disengage.—
Al Sefati,
Forbes.com,
9 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The Anderson classification system for turf toe is split into three grades.—
Julia Jacobo,
ABC News,
15 Sep. 2025
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Plans also call for remodeling the existing southern section into 3,700 square feet of additional commercial space, split evenly between two storefronts.—
Adrienne Davis,
jsonline.com,
15 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Splayed.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/splayed. Accessed 18 Sep. 2025.
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