sprawl

Everyday

1. To sprawl is to sit or lie with your arms and legs spread out in a relaxed or careless way. tree →
2. To sprawl can mean to fall so that you land spread out. tree →
3. A town or city that sprawls spreads out over a large area in an untidy way. tree →
4. Sprawl (urban sprawl) is the spreading of houses, shops and roads into the countryside around a city. tree →

In the lessons

Everyday life: sprawling on the sofa, sending someone sprawling in football. Geography: urban sprawl around big cities like Los Angeles or Sydney means people need cars, and countryside is lost; planners try to control it with green belts (UK). Stories: «sprawled on the floor» can show someone exhausted or knocked down.

Examples

• He sprawled on the sofa after football. tree →
• The tackle sent her sprawling onto the grass. tree →
• The city sprawls for miles. tree →
• Urban sprawl is eating up farmland. tree →
• The cat lay sprawled in the sun. tree →
• A sprawling old house stood on the hill. tree →
• Green belts stop sprawl around London. tree →
• "Hallo, Woe! why are you always idly sprawling there?" tree →

Note

Adjective «sprawling» = spreading widely. Noun «sprawl» is usually uncountable (urban sprawl). Do not confuse with «crawl» or «brawl» (a rough fight).