splay
Example Sentences
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"The foot does start to change shape and tends to splay a little bit over time," says Branthwaite.
From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026
"The island is kind of stuck in the middle of these splay faults, so anytime these splay faults rupture, it's actually recording the uplift," DePaolis said.
From Science Daily ● May 20, 2024
Too many such cells caused the sepals to splay and expose the petals prematurely.
From Science Magazine ● Aug. 23, 2023
Branches splay out widely and become roosting places for choirs of myna birds.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 10, 2023
She rustled in the tatters of her dress, groped for her smoking pipe, then remembered she was out of tobacco and let her hands splay restlessly in her lap.
From "The Birchbark House" by Louise Erdrich
This is a woman who has the world where she wants it, and who laughs blithely throughout our chat – even when discussing the terrifying anxieties she nightly splays across the stage.
From The Guardian ● Aug. 20, 2019
They end as high-contrast splays of sound, ranging from melodic solo statements to coordinated wallops.
From New York Times ● May 4, 2017
Sediment that breaches the levees during flood stage is called crevasse splays delivering silt and clay into the floodplain.
From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2017
The anole splays its little lizard fingers to break its fall as it hurtles face-first onto the ground.
From Slate ● Oct. 23, 2014
It splays across the hot cement and dangles near the toes of her sneakers.
From "Hello, Universe" by Erin Entrada Kelly
Just before the trailer finishes, a hilarious decree comes down from Mount Disney, splayed across the screen like law: “See it in InfinityVision!”
From Salon ● Sep. 11, 2026
On the Estonian side, antitank obstacles called dragon’s teeth are splayed along a small section of the riverbank, fenced in by barbed wire.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2026
Back in my room, I lay in bed and splayed out the cash in my hand, sending a photo of the bounty to my wife, who was surely fast asleep.
From Slate ● Nov. 18, 2025
The full video shows a man — Retes — splayed on the ground surrounded by agents.
From Salon ● Oct. 16, 2025
Glancing up, he saw with a start that his fingers were a hair’s breadth away from a large splayed hand that had been hammer-etched deep into the stone.
From "Wolf Brother" by Michelle Paver
Images from the scene show a mangled heap of scaffolding and concrete splaying out onto the street, covered by green safety netting.
From BBC ● May 24, 2026
Little happens other than chain-smoking, costume changes and interminable shots of color-shifting strobe lighting splaying across the cast’s cheekbones.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 19, 2026
A blue face staring blankly from a shelf; a green spiderlike machine splaying its legs out of a basket on the ground; a delicate dragonfly robot balanced on a worktable.
From New York Times ● Jan. 6, 2023
Do not braid or fold the leaves; gather them with garden twine to prevent splaying.
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 6, 2021
The little creature flops down on a nearby cushion, her legs splaying in all directions.
From "The Belles" by Dhonielle Clayton
Vocabulary lists containing splay
The Hobbit
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One of Us Is Lying
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"The Ravine" by Graham Salisbury
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