scatter

I. verb Etymology: Middle English scateren, schateren to disperse, break up, destroy; akin to Middle Dutch schaderen to scatter Date: 14th century transitive verb 1. a. to cause to separate widely b. to cause to vanish 2. archaic to fling away heedlessly ; squander 3. to distribute irregularly 4. to sow by casting in all directions ; strew 5. a. to reflect irregularly and diffusely b. to cause (a beam of radiation) to diffuse or disperse 6. to divide into ineffectual small portions intransitive verb 1. to separate and go in various directions ; disperse 2. to occur or fall irregularly or at random • scatterer noun Synonyms: scatter, disperse, dissipate, dispel mean to cause to separate or break up. scatter implies a force that drives parts or units irregularly in many directions <

the bowling ball scattered the pins

>. disperse implies a wider separation and a complete breaking up of a mass or group <

police dispersed the crowd

>. dissipate stresses complete disintegration or dissolution and final disappearance <

the fog was dissipated by the morning sun

>. dispel stresses a driving away or getting rid of as if by scattering <

an authoritative statement that dispelled all doubt

>. II. noun Date: 1642 1. the act of scattering 2. a small quantity or number irregularly distributed or strewn about ; scattering 3. the state or extent of being scattered; especially dispersion