[spread] vb spread ; spread.ing [ME spreden, fr. OE -spraedan; akin to OHG spreiten to spread] vt (13c) 1 a: to open or expand over a larger area "~ out the map" b: to stretch out: extend "~ its wings for flight"
2. a: to distribute over an area "~ fertilizer" b: to distribute over a period or among a group "~ the work over a few weeks" c: to apply on a surface "~ butter on bread" d (1): to cover or overlay something with "~ the cloth on the table" (2) archaic: to cover completely e (1): to prepare or furnish for dining: set "~ the table" (2): serve "~ the afternoon tea" 3 a: to make widely known "~ the news" b: to extend the range or incidence of "~ a disease" c: diffuse, emit "flowers ~ing their fragrance"
4: to push apart by weight or force ~ vi 1 a: to become dispersed, distributed, or scattered b: to become known or disseminated "panic ~ rapidly"
2: to grow in length or breadth: expand
3: to move apart (as from pressure or weight): separate -- spread.abil.i.ty n -- spread.able adj
[2]spread n (1626) 1 a: the act or process of spreading b: extent of spreading
2: something spread out: as a: a surface area: expanse b West (1): ranch (2): a herd of animals c (1): a prominent display in a periodical (2): two facing pages (as of a newspaper) usu. with matter running across the fold; also: the matter occupying these pages
3: something spread on or over a surface: as a: a food to be spread (as on bread or crackers) "a cheese ~" b: a sumptuous meal: feast c: a cloth cover for a table or bed
4: distance between two points: gap
5: 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