as in spreading
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 splaying
Weah often stayed high, with Miles Robinson splaying out to the right touchline in a traditional right fullback position.
—
Paul Tenorio, New York Times, 11 Oct. 2025
Bob came out, blinking his eyes hard and closing his big fists tight, splaying his fingers back out in a pink baby starfish.
—Literary Hub, 13 Aug. 2025
Paul Tenorio, New York Times, 11 Oct. 2025
Bob came out, blinking his eyes hard and closing his big fists tight, splaying his fingers back out in a pink baby starfish.
—Literary Hub, 13 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for splaying
Verb
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And in 2008, the site allowed users to create their own feeds—called subreddits—creating popular threads on topics like politics and science, but also spreading controversial content.—
Eleanor Pringle,
Fortune,
3 Nov. 2025
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Animation is spreading to ever corner of Latin America.—
John Hopewell,
Variety,
3 Nov. 2025
Verb
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After splitting the first two games of the Fall Classic in Toronto, an 18-inning Game 3 went to the Dodgers in thrilling walk-off fashion, but since that fateful Freddie Freeman swing, the Dodgers have been outscored, 12-3, in the next two games.—
Gabe Smallson,
MSNBC Newsweek,
31 Oct. 2025
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Judge Melissa Moore Murphy also ordered Snelling to serve out the remainder of her house arrest at the home of her father, as opposed to splitting her time between both her mother and father's home as outlined in the court's initial pretrial release conditions.—
Chris Spargo,
PEOPLE,
30 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Do this in the early evening while there's still daylight and the ground is radiating heat.—
Brandee Gruener,
Southern Living,
29 Oct. 2025
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The green leaves radiating from the base of each dandelion.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
20 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Splaying.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/splaying. Accessed 4 Nov. 2025.
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