SPRAWLING Synonyms: 83 Similar and Opposite Words

sprawling

verb

present participle of sprawl

as in extending

to extend outwards from or as if from a central point The suburbs sprawl for miles beyond the city's downtown.

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Dissimilar Words

as in sitting

to rest with the arms and legs spread out There's no feeling like sprawling out on your bed after a hard day's work.

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Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of sprawling Aviation is increasingly in the middle of these sprawling clashes as threats and outright attacks have forced airlines to quickly cancel flights throughout the Middle East for days, weeks and, in some cases, months. — Leslie Josephs, CNBC, 13 Oct. 2026 In sharp contrast to sprawling industry conferences or high-volume networking mixers where business cards are exchanged in seven-minute increments, these occasions are engineered for depth, the co-founders said. — Arthur Zaczkiewicz, Footwear News, 13 Oct. 2026 Guests get access to City Fitness Fishtown, a sprawling gym and wellness facility located just across the street. — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 13 Oct. 2026 Each fall, Earth crosses different parts of this sprawling debris stream, producing the overlapping Northern and Southern Taurids and, occasionally, the larger fragments that create spectacular fireballs. — Jamie Carter, Space.com, 12 Oct. 2026 During our tour, Gallegos noted the battery development complex draws more power than any other single part of the sprawling Warren campus. — John Voelcker, The Verge, 12 Oct. 2026 Another one of the most well-known is Kaymakli, another sprawling underground complex not far from Derinkuyu. — Maya Chawla, Architectural Digest, 12 Oct. 2026 Though Latin America’s sprawling club movement is at the forefront of dance music innovation, the inclusion of women has often lagged, despite an abundance of talent. — Richard Villegas, Rolling Stone, 12 Oct. 2026 Her work still continues, for instance, with Array, her sprawling distribution and advocacy company for underrepresented filmmakers. — David Canfield, HollywoodReporter, 6 Oct. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for sprawling

Verb

Dimitris Ampatzidis, maritime risk and compliance manager at Kpler, said the attacks underscored Iran's continuing ability to threaten commercial vessels, with the risks extending beyond oil and gas transportation.

— Lee Ying Shan, CNBC, 16 Oct. 2026
For most of my career, accelerating a road map usually meant adding people, extending timelines or reducing scope.

— Luis Aburto, Forbes.com, 16 Oct. 2026

Definition of extending

Verb

Unfortunately, Mascis has developed a similar reputation as an interview subject, quietly sitting and offering deft nonanswers.

— Terrence O'Brien, The Verge, 18 Oct. 2026
There is something fitting about seeing Deakins, whose work is so often studied and dissected by others, sitting among the audience, still looking and listening.

— Callum McLennan, Variety, 18 Oct. 2026

Definition of sitting

Verb

But the world’s two biggest economies have been diverging in key ways with implications for future growth and indebtedness.

— Jason Ma, Fortune, 11 Oct. 2026
In a powerfully compelling novel that brims with the cadences of the Black South, Jones explores the women’s diverging lives while using them as a lens to observe social injustice in language that is intimate, conversational, and musical.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 8 Oct. 2026

Definition of diverging

Verb

Note the yellow band—interest on the national debt—which is expanding fast.

— Jim Edwards, Fortune, 20 Oct. 2026
The agreement comes as electricity demand rises across the United States, driven partly by expanding data centers, manufacturing and electrification.

— Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 20 Oct. 2026

Definition of expanding

Verb

Ultimately, six people—Skarsgård, Colman, Fischer, Wilson, intimacy coordinator Ita O’Brien, and Oscar-winning cinematographer Lol Crawley—all experimented with positions together, straddling each other in odd ways to block the scenes.

— Kenneal Patterson, Vanity Fair, 14 Oct. 2026
Wiener not only leaves behind a richly complex body of work straddling textiles, painting, photographs, and collages, but also a career intricately connected to one of the most important chapters of Austrian art.

— Francesca Aton, ARTnews.com, 2 Oct. 2026

Definition of straddling

Verb

In photos shared by celebrity hairstylist Dimitris Giannetos on September 19, the British lawyer could be seen radiating in a sunshine yellow sundress during a week-long trip to Malawi, Africa as part of a Clooney Foundation for Justice initiative.

— Lara Walsh, InStyle, 19 Sep. 2026
Barbara and Ibby forge a friendship that’s unexpectedly compelling because of the strength of the two actors, radiating an interiority that isn’t on the page.

— Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 19 Sep. 2026

Definition of radiating

Verb

The 101’ers formed in 1974 as a house band among the residents of 101 Walterton Road in Maida Vale, where Strummer and his fellow musicians were squatting.

— SPIN Staff, SPIN, 8 Oct. 2026
Because of that weakness, opposing defenses have been squatting on Green Bay’s routes, believing their rush would get home on Jordan Love.

— Jonathan Jones, New York Times, 3 Oct. 2026

Definition of squatting

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Style

“Sprawling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sprawling. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of sprawling

verb

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