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.
Related Words
Relevance
Dissimilar Words
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 splayed
Judges score the flips and spins, including pretzel-like shapes with skis splayed or crossed, before the skiers pull up at the last split second and slam skis-first into the landing area, kicking up a spray of snow.
—
ABC News, 16 Feb. 2026
The entire western-facing wall of the house is glass—the valley and forest splayed out before us, in every shade of green imaginable.
—Devorah Lev-Tov, Condé Nast Traveler, 19 Jan. 2026
Also, there are no people and everything is compressed, as if a giant hand had come down from the sky and harmlessly splayed the three-dimensional world out into two, for easier viewing.
—Lori Waxman, Chicago Tribune, 2 Jan. 2026
During this particularly artsy weekend, more than 600 artists turn the streets of downtown Lake Worth Beach into a temporary open-air museum with larger-than-life chalk murals splayed across Lake and Lucerne Avenues.
—Skye Sherman, Southern Living, 22 Dec. 2025
Compacted into 137 bundles, that steel had to be meticulously splayed out in order to successfully loop around the roadbed, just before the Yerba Buena Tunnel.
—Katie Lauer, Mercury News, 22 Dec. 2025
The clip accompanying the Facebook post starts with the 600-pound gator splayed out on a Florida road as several uniformed people approach it.
—Kelli Bender, PEOPLE, 5 Dec. 2025
With his eyes rolled back in his head and his hand splayed in front of him, Will stops them each mid-air and kills them instantly.
—Katie Campione, Deadline, 26 Nov. 2025
On the album cover, she’s splayed across a blue-gray carpet in a brown sweater and sheer tights.
—Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 21 Nov. 2025
ABC News, 16 Feb. 2026
The entire western-facing wall of the house is glass—the valley and forest splayed out before us, in every shade of green imaginable.
—Devorah Lev-Tov, Condé Nast Traveler, 19 Jan. 2026
Also, there are no people and everything is compressed, as if a giant hand had come down from the sky and harmlessly splayed the three-dimensional world out into two, for easier viewing.
—Lori Waxman, Chicago Tribune, 2 Jan. 2026
During this particularly artsy weekend, more than 600 artists turn the streets of downtown Lake Worth Beach into a temporary open-air museum with larger-than-life chalk murals splayed across Lake and Lucerne Avenues.
—Skye Sherman, Southern Living, 22 Dec. 2025
Compacted into 137 bundles, that steel had to be meticulously splayed out in order to successfully loop around the roadbed, just before the Yerba Buena Tunnel.
—Katie Lauer, Mercury News, 22 Dec. 2025
The clip accompanying the Facebook post starts with the 600-pound gator splayed out on a Florida road as several uniformed people approach it.
—Kelli Bender, PEOPLE, 5 Dec. 2025
With his eyes rolled back in his head and his hand splayed in front of him, Will stops them each mid-air and kills them instantly.
—Katie Campione, Deadline, 26 Nov. 2025
On the album cover, she’s splayed across a blue-gray carpet in a brown sweater and sheer tights.
—Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 21 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for splayed
Verb
-
Europe’s is a false economy, spending less now, but risking spending far more if the conflict spreads in the future.—
Nick Paton Walsh,
CNN Money,
24 Feb. 2026
-
And believe me, a person who receives warmth, love, and care from us—who washes and styles their hair—is someone who walks back into the world feeling confident, inspired, and ready to spread kindness further.—
Sophia Panych,
Allure,
24 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Young customers cite frustration with subscription fatigue and content scattered across platforms, viewing physical media ownership as a form of cultural rebellion.—
Cerys Davies,
Los Angeles Times,
23 Feb. 2026
-
These Winter Olympics were the most spread-out in history, with four venues hosting speedskating, hockey and figure skating in the city’s outskirts while the rest of the Games’ 12 sports were scattered across difficult-to-reach mountain towns hours away.—
Andrew Greif,
NBC news,
23 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Bridgeman pocketed $4 million on Sunday while Sepp Straka and Brian Harman split the last-place share of $51,000.—
Steve Galluzzo,
Los Angeles Times,
23 Feb. 2026
-
For this service they were allegedly paid $60,000 to split among themselves.—
Flint McColgan,
Boston Herald,
22 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Splayed.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/splayed. Accessed 26 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
