I.
noun
1 increase in amount or number of sth
ADJECTIVE
▪ good , great , wide
▪ rapid
▪ gradual , slow
▪ geographical , global
▪
The current survey will have a wider geographical ~.
VERB + SPREAD
▪ encourage , promote
▪
Such unhygienic conditions encourage the ~ of disease.
▪ halt , prevent , stem , stop , tackle
▪ combat , contain , control , curb , limit , reduce , slow ( esp. AmE )
PREPOSITION
▪ ~ of
▪
the ~ of fire
2 newspaper, magazine, etc.
ADJECTIVE
▪ centre/center
▪
A photograph of the star adorned the centre/center ~.
▪ double , double-page ( esp. BrE ), two-page
▪ five-page , 20-page , etc.
▪ full-page
▪ fashion , photo
PHRASES
▪ be featured in a ~ , feature in a ~
▪
She is featured in ~s in Vogue.
▪
Her work featured in a two-page ~ in ‘New Woman’ magazine.
II.
verb
1 open sth so that you can see all of it
ADVERB
▪ carefully
▪ out
▪
We ~ the rug out on the floor.
PREPOSITION
▪ across , on , over
PHRASES
▪ ~ sth open
▪
He had a newspaper ~ open on his knee.
▪ ~ your arms, legs, etc. out wide , ~ your arms, legs, etc. wide
▪
a bird with its wings ~ wide
2 reach more people/wider area
ADVERB
▪ fast , like wildfire , quickly , rapidly , soon
▪
The news ~ like wildfire.
▪ gradually , slowly
▪ easily
▪
The disease ~s easily.
▪ widely
▪
Allow plenty of space for this plant as its roots ~ widely.
▪ far and wide
▪
His fame had ~ far and wide.
▪ outwards/outward
PREPOSITION
▪ (all) across , among , around , beyond , by , from , into , (all) over , through , throughout , to
▪
The effects of this policy ~ far beyond children now at school.
▪
The disease can be ~ by contact.
▪
The fire rapidly ~ to adjoining buildings.
PHRASES
▪ be thinly ~
▪
Expertise in this field is very thinly ~ across the country.
▪ ~ yourself too thin
▪
With four markets to manage, there's a danger that's she's ~ing herself too thin.
3 cover a surface with a soft substance
ADVERB
▪ thickly
▪ lightly , thinly
▪ evenly
▪
Don't make the paste too thick, or it will not ~ evenly.
PREPOSITION
▪ on
▪
He ~ marmalade on the toast.
▪ with
▪
Spread each slice generously with butter.
4 divide/share sth
ADVERB
▪ equally , evenly , uniformly
▪ unevenly
VERB + SPREAD
▪ try to
PREPOSITION
▪ among , between
▪
We tried to ~ the workload evenly between the departments.
▪ over
▪
The course takes forty hours, ~ over twenty weeks.
Spread is used with these nouns as the subject: ↑ awareness , ↑ blaze , ↑ blood , ↑ blush , ↑ butter , ↑ cancer , ↑ crack , ↑ discontent , ↑ disease , ↑ effect , ↑ epidemic , ↑ fame , ↑ fire , ↑ flame , ↑ flush , ↑ infection , ↑ mosquito , ↑ news , ↑ panic , ↑ plague , ↑ rash , ↑ religion , ↑ revolt , ↑ revolution , ↑ ripple , ↑ rumour , ↑ sensation , ↑ silence , ↑ smile , ↑ stain , ↑ story , ↑ strike , ↑ violence , ↑ virus , ↑ war , ↑ warmth , ↑ weed , ↑ word
Spread is used with these nouns as the object: ↑ ash , ↑ bread , ↑ butter , ↑ chocolate , ↑ cost , ↑ democracy , ↑ disease , ↑ faith , ↑ fertilizer , ↑ finger , ↑ frosting , ↑ germ , ↑ gospel , ↑ gossip , ↑ hand , ↑ HIV , ↑ honey , ↑ icing , ↑ ideology , ↑ infection , ↑ influence , ↑ investment , ↑ jam , ↑ jelly , ↑ joy , ↑ knowledge , ↑ leg , ↑ load , ↑ manure , ↑ margarine , ↑ message , ↑ misinformation , ↑ mixture , ↑ mustard , ↑ myth , ↑ net , ↑ news , ↑ palm , ↑ panic , ↑ plague , ↑ poison , ↑ pollen , ↑ propaganda , ↑ religion , ↑ repayment , ↑ risk , ↑ rumour , ↑ seed , ↑ story , ↑ teaching , ↑ terror , ↑ toast , ↑ virus , ↑ wealth , ↑ wing , ↑ word , ↑ workload , ↑ wreckage