WordGarden.iospatter
C2Pronunciation
UK
- /spˈætə/
US
- /ˈspætər/
Meanings
Verb
to scatter or splash in small drops
Noun
scattered drops or small splash marks on a surface
Beyond the definition
Imagine throwing paint at a canvas. Do you see the tiny droplets that fly off and land in random places? That's what this word is about. It describes small drops or bits of something being thrown or scattered around. You might see it when mud flies from car tires, grease jumps from a frying pan, or paint hits a wall. It is most often used for liquids, but it can also describe small bits of material being flung around.
The word often suggests messiness and quick, uncontrolled movement. A cook might worry about grease spattering while frying food, while an artist might create spatter on purpose for a special effect. It can describe something unpleasant or chaotic, but it can also be part of a creative process.
To spatter means to throw, splash, or scatter small drops or particles onto a surface. Think of rain spattering against a window during a storm and leaving tiny wet marks. Or picture a playful puppy shaking water from its fur and sending droplets in every direction. The movement is not smooth or steady; it happens in small, separate bursts.
The word often carries a slightly negative feeling because it suggests mess, disorder, or sometimes violence. For example, an investigator might study blood spatter to help reconstruct what happened. But the word is not always negative. Artists sometimes spatter paint onto a canvas to create texture and energy, and in that setting the effect can be deliberate and striking.
As a verb, you can spatter something: "He accidentally spattered sauce all over his shirt." As a noun, it refers to the marks or droplets left behind: "The wall was covered in grease spatter from cooking." The word usually suggests that something was sent outward with some force, not that it simply dripped. A leaky faucet drips; a pan of hot oil can spatter.
So whether you are describing an accidental mess, a violent scene, or a paint technique, the word gives the image of small drops or particles spreading outward in quick bursts.
Examples
- 1
Cooking
Oil spattered onto the stove when she dropped the onions into the hot pan.
- 2
Weather
Rain spattered against the bus window all the way home.
- 3
Clothing
By the end of the shift, his apron was spattered with tomato sauce.
- Patternspattered with + liquid
marked by many small drops
- 4
Figurative use
The first draft was spattered with spelling mistakes.
- Patternspattered with + small things
having many small things spread across it, not only liquid
More examplesFewer examples
- 5
Sparse reaction
There was only a spatter of applause at first.
- Patterna spatter of + response
a small scattered amount
See also
Forms and spellings
4 forms open this card.
Main spelling
- spatternounverb
Forms
- spatteredpast tenseverbnoun
- spattering-ing formverbnoun
- spatterspluralnounverb