1
as in extending
to extend outwards from or as if from a central point
The suburbs sprawl for miles beyond the city's downtown.
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2
as in sitting
to rest with the arms and legs spread out
There's no feeling like sprawling out on your bed after a hard day's work.
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of sprawling
The home boasts clean lines, a sprawling backyard featuring a fire pit and a pool, as well as a home gym.
—
Madison E. Goldberg, PEOPLE, 23 Oct. 2025
Accommodations range from 312-square-foot Standard Rooms with a desk and floor-to-ceiling windows to the sprawling 1,048 Presidential Suite with a separate living room and eat-in kitchen.
—Regan Stephens, Travel + Leisure, 22 Oct. 2025
In a sprawling complex near Shanghai, giant reactor pressure vessels are being continuously forged, ready to be shipped to new projects without delay.
—Brad Plumer, New York Times, 22 Oct. 2025
The Australian group, led by Kevin Parker, set up on the empty theater’s stage in a circle to perform the sprawling tracks.
—Emily Zemler, Rolling Stone, 22 Oct. 2025
But the explosion of generative AI, and its massive computing needs, has turned what were once modest server farms into sprawling mega-complexes that can take up many millions of square feet, draw enough electricity to power a medium-sized city, and consume millions of gallons of water.
—Sharon Goldman, Fortune, 22 Oct. 2025
Our original report focused on the impact that the breach had on Bectu members, working across the entertainment industry, but Prospect’s activities are sprawling.
—Jake Kanter, Deadline, 21 Oct. 2025
The studio also runs the country’s sprawling horizon water tank facility.
—Anna Marie De La Fuente, Variety, 15 Oct. 2025
The album is probably his most divisive, crackling with the frantic, sprawling energy of political upheaval.
—Amanda Petrusich, New Yorker, 15 Oct. 2025
Madison E. Goldberg, PEOPLE, 23 Oct. 2025
Accommodations range from 312-square-foot Standard Rooms with a desk and floor-to-ceiling windows to the sprawling 1,048 Presidential Suite with a separate living room and eat-in kitchen.
—Regan Stephens, Travel + Leisure, 22 Oct. 2025
In a sprawling complex near Shanghai, giant reactor pressure vessels are being continuously forged, ready to be shipped to new projects without delay.
—Brad Plumer, New York Times, 22 Oct. 2025
The Australian group, led by Kevin Parker, set up on the empty theater’s stage in a circle to perform the sprawling tracks.
—Emily Zemler, Rolling Stone, 22 Oct. 2025
But the explosion of generative AI, and its massive computing needs, has turned what were once modest server farms into sprawling mega-complexes that can take up many millions of square feet, draw enough electricity to power a medium-sized city, and consume millions of gallons of water.
—Sharon Goldman, Fortune, 22 Oct. 2025
Our original report focused on the impact that the breach had on Bectu members, working across the entertainment industry, but Prospect’s activities are sprawling.
—Jake Kanter, Deadline, 21 Oct. 2025
The studio also runs the country’s sprawling horizon water tank facility.
—Anna Marie De La Fuente, Variety, 15 Oct. 2025
The album is probably his most divisive, crackling with the frantic, sprawling energy of political upheaval.
—Amanda Petrusich, New Yorker, 15 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sprawling
Verb
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China’s Seafaring History (Smithsonian Magazine) by Sean Kingsley China has a history of maritime trade extending to West Africa, the Mediterranean, and much of Asia that goes back to the first millennium.—
JSTOR Daily,
JSTOR Daily,
29 Oct. 2025
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Kansas City Chiefs rookie left tackle Josh Simmons missed his third straight game Monday night against the Washington Commanders, extending an absence from the team that began in mid-October.—
Pete Sweeney,
Kansas City Star,
28 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
The Chamber, historically aligned with Republican administrations, rarely challenges policies from a sitting GOP president.—
Robert Alexander,
MSNBC Newsweek,
27 Oct. 2025
-
While sitting front row at the event, Paltrow could be seen wearing a white skirt with a matching white cowl-neck top.—
Catherine Santino,
PEOPLE,
27 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The key people in Haiti hold diverging views on whether to maintain or modify the current transitional governance arrangement, Guterres said.—
Jacqueline Charles,
Miami Herald,
22 Oct. 2025
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In a joint interview, Allen and Moretz spoke with Them about the work of taking a character like Maddie from page to stage, and about diverging from traditional trans narratives to tell a new kind of family story.—
Mathew Rodriguez,
Them.,
21 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Van Gogh, now visually fitting in with his family, then scampered about his habitat with his ears flopping along with him.—
Rachel Raposas,
PEOPLE,
23 Oct. 2025
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With Ares flopping, the insider says Leto’s currency in town has run colder than Morbius’ vampire blood.—
Pamela McClintock,
HollywoodReporter,
14 Oct. 2025
Verb
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In 2025, Ohtani is likely to earn another MVP award, adding to his ever-expanding trophy cabinet.—
Nelson Espinal,
MSNBC Newsweek,
25 Oct. 2025
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Environmental advocates question the need for expanding fossil fuel resources a time when greenhouse gases from those fuels are worsening climate change.—
Sarah Henry,
AZCentral.com,
25 Oct. 2025
Verb
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In post-Matrix mode, Reeves tries to launch another franchise in a DC Comics adaptation about a man who can see spirits on Earth and is doomed to atone for a suicide attempt by straddling the divide twixt Heaven and Hell.—
Tim Grierson,
Vulture,
18 Oct. 2025
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Look at The Market Place, a 130-store shopping center just off the 5 Freeway straddling Irvine and Tustin.—
Jonathan Lansner,
Oc Register,
16 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The green leaves radiating from the base of each dandelion.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
20 Oct. 2025
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Comet Lemmon's tail was formed when heat radiating from the sun caused icy materials embedded in its ancient body to transform directly into gas, a process known as sublimation.—
Anthony Wood,
Space.com,
16 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Maintaining the tugboat became cumbersome, and three Zizian members opted to move into box trucks before squatting in a Bay Area trailer lot owned by Curtis Lind, then age 80, a former shipworker and grandfather of four.—
Mia Cathell,
The Washington Examiner,
20 Oct. 2025
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His income is uncertain, and he’s been living with Bennett, a younger drinking buddy who, in turn, is basically squatting in his dead aunt’s apartment.—
Willing Davidson,
New Yorker,
19 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Sprawling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sprawling. Accessed 29 Oct. 2025.
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