as in to 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 splay
Diaz often shows us the aftermath of battles, where dozens of bodies are artfully splayed on the ground, instead of the battles themselves.
—
Jordan Mintzer, HollywoodReporter, 24 May 2025
The executive then winds up splayed out at the base of the sculpture, soaking wet and dead to the world.
—Nick Caruso, TVLine, 21 May 2025
In my experience, tripod stools like this one tend to wobble on uneven ground, but GCI has solved that issue with a clever piece of fabric around the legs that stops them from splaying out.
—Alice Bennett, Travel + Leisure, 28 May 2025
Its resemblance to a spine-down volume with the pages splayed out is entirely intentional.
—Anthony Paletta, Curbed, 20 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for splay
Jordan Mintzer, HollywoodReporter, 24 May 2025
The executive then winds up splayed out at the base of the sculpture, soaking wet and dead to the world.
—Nick Caruso, TVLine, 21 May 2025
In my experience, tripod stools like this one tend to wobble on uneven ground, but GCI has solved that issue with a clever piece of fabric around the legs that stops them from splaying out.
—Alice Bennett, Travel + Leisure, 28 May 2025
Its resemblance to a spine-down volume with the pages splayed out is entirely intentional.
—Anthony Paletta, Curbed, 20 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for splay
Recent Examples of Synonyms for splay
Verb
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Zoning, including single-family-exclusive zoning, first spread across the US in the early 20th century (before that, development was far more freewheeling and improvised).—
Marina Bolotnikova,
Vox,
7 July 2025
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Associated Press The Context The Daily Beast article quickly spread across social media, where Cruz faced criticism over the trip.—
Andrew Stanton
Gabe Whisnant,
MSNBC Newsweek,
7 July 2025
Verb
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The experts split into teams representing the U.S. and China, and each side was armed with the weapons that its country is thought to possess.—
Dexter Filkins,
New Yorker,
14 July 2025
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If their parents died, the sisters would split their inheritance.—
Rosalio Ahumada,
Sacbee.com,
14 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Splay.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/splay. Accessed 19 Jul. 2025.
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