splay
verb · adjective · adverb · noun
Simple meaning
To construct a bevel or slope on.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
splayIPA pronunciation (US)
spleɪ
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
verb
transitivechiefly architecture
To construct a bevel or slope on (something, such as the frame or jamb of a door or window); to bevel, to slant, to slope.
transitive
To spread, spread apart, or spread out (something); to expand.
intransitive
To spread out awkwardly; to sprawl.
Spread open or apart
“He splayed his huge hands over the table.”
intransitive
To have, or lie in, an oblique or slanted position.
transitivecomputing theory
To rearrange (a splay tree) so that a desired element is placed at the root.
adjective
Oblique, slanted.
Turned outward; spread out.
figurative
Crooked, distorted, out of place.
adverb
Of walking, etc.: with the feet turned outwards; in a splayfooted manner.
In an oblique or slanted manner; obliquely, slantedly.
noun
An outward spread of an object such as a bowl or cup.
An outward bevel around a door or window that makes it seem larger
A bevel, slant, or slope, especially of the frame or jamb of a door or window, by which an opening is made larger at one face of the wall than at the other, or larger at each of the faces than it is between them.
The amount of such a bevel, slant, or slope.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- C2 · Proficient (estimated)
- Frequency
- Rare
- Typical Use
- Varies by meaning
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: (chiefly architecture) To construct a bevel or slope on (something, such as the frame or jamb of a door or window); to bevel, to slant, to slope.
Used this way, splay is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- No strong connotation
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use splay
- “He splayed his huge hands over the table.”verb
- “These birds can splay out their toes.”verb
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Common Patterns and Combinations
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.