SPREAD

I. verb (~; ~ing) Etymology: Middle English spreden, from Old English -sprǣdan; akin to Old High German spreiten to ~ Date: 13th century transitive verb 1. to open or expand over a larger area , to stretch out ; extend , 2. to distribute over an area , to distribute over a period or among a group , to apply on a surface , d. to cover or overlay something with , to cover completely, e. to prepare or furnish for dining ; set , serve , 3. to make widely known , to extend the range or incidence of , diffuse , emit , to push apart by weight or force, intransitive verb 1. to become dispersed, distributed, or scattered, to become known or disseminated , to grow in length or breadth ; expand , to move apart (as from pressure or weight) ; separate , ~ability noun ~able adjective II. noun Date: 1626 1. the act or process of ~ing, extent of ~ing, something ~ out: as, a surface area ; expanse , b. a ranch or homestead especially in the western United States, a herd of animals, c. a prominent display in a periodical, two facing pages (as of a newspaper) usually with matter running across the fold, something ~ on or over a surface: as, a food to be ~ (as on bread or crackers) , a sumptuous meal ; feast , a cloth cover for a table or bed, distance between two points ; gap , a commodities market transaction in which a participant hedges with simultaneous long and short options in different commodities or different delivery dates in the same commodity