# spread out

idiom

Source: https://englishreference.com/idiom/spread-out
Updated: 2026-08-10

## Meaning

Become further apart.

## Examples

- Please spread out so everyone has enough room.
- The students spread out across the library to find quiet places to study for their exams.
- As the city population grew, the residents began to spread out into the surrounding countryside, transforming the quiet rural landscape into a sprawling suburban network.

## Origin

An analytic form of the earlier *outspread*, functioning as a phrasal verb constructed from the adverb *out* and the verb *spread*.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.