splay
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splay¹
- /spleɪ/ US, UK
Rhymes with -eɪ
Where it comes from
PIE word
*dwís
The verb is derived from Middle English splaien, splayen (“to display; to spread out, unfurl (a flag, etc.); (cooking) to cut open (a fish) lengthwise and lay it open; (figurative) to appear; to spread”), an aphetic form of Middle English displaien, displayen (“to display”): see display.
The adjective and adverb are derived from the verb, or from splayfoot (noun) or splayfooted (adjective). The noun is derived from the verb.
verb splays · splaying · splayed
- To spread, spread apart, or spread out (something); to expand. Thiſſame ſo great a chaunge of the world, begoonne within a fewe yeares after Chriſt was putte to death, to be made generall and common through al the whold worlde, and withoute any maintenaunce or ſupportacion of mã [man], it encreaced from tyme to tyme ſtill more and more, vntyll the piece of leau
- 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. When entrance and egress [through a door] are constant, it may be supposed that the valves will be absent or unfastened,—that people will be passing more quickly than when the entrance and egress are unfrequent, and that the square angles of the wall will be inconvenient to such quick passers throug
- To rearrange (a splay tree) so that a desired element is placed at the root.
- To dislocate (a body part such as a shoulder bone).
-
To unfurl or unroll (a banner or flag).
Ye grounde yow vpon Godfrey, that grysly gargons face, / Your stondarde, Syr Olifranke, agenst me for to splay: […]
Similar: display
- To have, or lie in, an oblique or slanted position.
- To spread out awkwardly; to sprawl. "What a finger!" says Mrs. Ponto, and indeed it was a finger, as knotted as a turkey's drumstick, and splaying all over the piano. When she had banged out the tune slowly, she began a different manner of "Gettin' up Stairs," and did so with a fury and swiftness quite incredible.
adjective more splay · most splay
- Oblique, slanted.
- Turned outward; spread out. to sit splay-legged
-
Crooked, distorted, out of place.
splay shoulders
Similar: awry
adverb more splay · most splay
-
In an oblique or slanted manner; obliquely, slantedly.
Similar: slantingly, slantwise, slopingly
-
Of walking, etc.: with the feet turned outwards; in a splayfooted manner.
Similar: splayfoot
noun splays
- An outward spread of an object such as a bowl or cup.
- 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 daylight was so lowered by the impervious roof of cloud overhead that it scarcely reached further into Lord Mountclere's entrance-hall than to the splays of the windows, even but an hour or two after midday; […]
- The amount of such a bevel, slant, or slope.
- A widening of a minor road where it forms a junction with a major road to ensure that the view of traffic on the major road by drivers on the minor road is not obstructed. visibility splay
- The view to the left or right which a driver on a minor road has of traffic on the major road; also, a plan showing this.
splay²
- /spleɪ/ US, UK
Rhymes with -eɪ
Where it comes from
From Middle English splaien, splayen, a variant of spaien, spayen (“to remove the ovaries of (a female animal), spay; to stab or kill (an animal)”): see spay.
verb splays · splaying · splayed
-
Synonym of spay (“to destroy or remove the ovaries and/or uterus (of a female animal) to prevent pregnancy”).
Sovves alſo are ſplaied as vvell as camels, but tvvo daies before, they be kept from meat; then hang they them by the forelegs for to make inciſion into their matrice [womb], and to take forth their ſtones: and by this means they vvill ſooner grovv to be fat.
Similar: spay
Translations
Every language
verb to spread, spread apart, or spread out (something)
| Español | disgregar, desperdigar |
|---|---|
| Deutsch | spreizen |
noun bevel, slant, or slope, especially of the frame or jamb of a door or window; The amount of such a bevel, slant, or slope — see also bevel, slant, slope
| Deutsch | Abkantung, Abschrägung |
|---|---|
| Italiano | sguancio, strombatura |
| Русский | отко́с otkós |
Talk about this word "splay." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/splay. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. splay. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/splay "splay." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/splay.Cite this
@misc{splay_2026,
title = {splay},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/splay},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
