What does scatter mean?

scatter means "to cause to separate and go in different directions". That is the primary sense; the word has 8 in total, listed in full on this page.

How many syllables are in scatter?

scatter has 2 syllables: scat-ter. The stress falls on "scat". In IPA it is /ˈskætɚ/.

What is another word for scatter?

Close synonyms include disperse, dissipate, dispel, break up, disperse. Each sense on this page lists its own synonyms, because a word with several meanings rarely has one substitute that works for all of them.

Is scatter a common word?

scatter is banded "Familiar" — widely understood, used when the subject calls for it. The band comes from how often the word appears in a large corpus of everyday English, not from an editor's impression.

scatter — meaning, pronunciation and 8 definitions

verb

6 sensesAn action, occurrence or state of being.

1.
to cause to separate and go in different directions
“She waved her hand and scattered the crowds”
Synonymsdisperse dissipate dispel break up
Broaderseparate
Narrowerdisband
2.
move away from each other
“The crowds dispersed”
“The children scattered in all directions when the teacher approached”
Synonymsdisperse dissipate spread out
Broaderseparate
Narroweraerosolize break volley
3.
distribute loosely
“He scattered gun powder under the wagon”
Synonymssprinkle dot dust disperse
Broaderdischarge
Narrowerspray spatter sprinkle bespangle aerosolize
4.
sow by scattering
“scatter seeds”
Broadersow
5.
cause to separate
“break up kidney stones”
“disperse particles”
Synonymsbreak up disperse
Broaderchange integrity
Narrowerbackscatter
6.
strew or distribute over an area
“He spread fertilizer over the lawn”
“scatter cards across the table”
Synonymsspread spread out
Broadercirculate
Narrowermanure birdlime circumfuse distribute

noun

2 sensesA person, place, thing, quality or idea.

1.
a haphazard distribution in all directions
Synonymsspread
Broaderdistribution
Narrowerdiffuseness
2.
the act of scattering
Synonymsscattering strewing
Broaderspread

Other forms of scatter

plural: scatters·
past tense: scatterred·
present participle: scatterring·

Forms marked · are formed by the regular rule rather than recorded in the source data. English keeps a few hundred irregulars and the rest follow the pattern, so the rule is right far more often than not — but it is a rule, and the mark says so.

Questions about scatter

What does scatter mean?: scatter means "to cause to separate and go in different directions". That is the primary sense; the word has 8 in total, listed in full on this page.
How many syllables are in scatter?: scatter has 2 syllables: scat-ter. The stress falls on "scat". In IPA it is /ˈskætɚ/.
What is another word for scatter?: Close synonyms include disperse, dissipate, dispel, break up, disperse. Each sense on this page lists its own synonyms, because a word with several meanings rarely has one substitute that works for all of them.
Is scatter a common word?: scatter is banded "Familiar" — widely understood, used when the subject calls for it. The band comes from how often the word appears in a large corpus of everyday English, not from an editor's impression.

Definitions, synonyms and semantic relations for scatter come from Princeton University’s WordNet. The pronunciation comes from the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. Commonness is measured against a corpus of everyday English. Full sources and licences.

verb

6 sensesAn action, occurrence or state of being.

1.
to cause to separate and go in different directions
“She waved her hand and scattered the crowds”
Synonymsdisperse dissipate dispel break up
Broaderseparate
Narrowerdisband
2.
move away from each other
“The crowds dispersed”
“The children scattered in all directions when the teacher approached”
Synonymsdisperse dissipate spread out
Broaderseparate
Narroweraerosolize break volley
3.
distribute loosely
“He scattered gun powder under the wagon”
Synonymssprinkle dot dust disperse
Broaderdischarge
Narrowerspray spatter sprinkle bespangle aerosolize
4.
sow by scattering
“scatter seeds”
Broadersow
5.
cause to separate
“break up kidney stones”
“disperse particles”
Synonymsbreak up disperse
Broaderchange integrity
Narrowerbackscatter
6.
strew or distribute over an area
“He spread fertilizer over the lawn”
“scatter cards across the table”
Synonymsspread spread out
Broadercirculate
Narrowermanure birdlime circumfuse distribute

noun

2 sensesA person, place, thing, quality or idea.

1.
a haphazard distribution in all directions
Synonymsspread
Broaderdistribution
Narrowerdiffuseness
2.
the act of scattering
Synonymsscattering strewing
Broaderspread

Other forms of scatter

plural: scatters·
past tense: scatterred·
present participle: scatterring·

Questions about scatter

What does scatter mean?: scatter means "to cause to separate and go in different directions". That is the primary sense; the word has 8 in total, listed in full on this page.
How many syllables are in scatter?: scatter has 2 syllables: scat-ter. The stress falls on "scat". In IPA it is /ˈskætɚ/.
What is another word for scatter?: Close synonyms include disperse, dissipate, dispel, break up, disperse. Each sense on this page lists its own synonyms, because a word with several meanings rarely has one substitute that works for all of them.
Is scatter a common word?: scatter is banded "Familiar" — widely understood, used when the subject calls for it. The band comes from how often the word appears in a large corpus of everyday English, not from an editor's impression.

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verb

noun

Other forms of scatter

Questions about scatter

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scatter

verb

noun

Other forms of scatter

Questions about scatter