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Glite Dictionary
to sprawl out

to sprawl out

5 3.8
Lie or sit with arms and legs spread out and relaxed
  • phrasal verb
  • /sprɔl aʊt/
  • Informal
translation icon : estirarse
  • After a long day, I love to sprawl out on the couch and relax.

And then if anybody who walks by the next booth is like, like, basically picture my dad sprawled out at Myrtle Beach.

Examples

  • And then I come home, and I find her sprawled out on the floor.

    No Looking Back (1998)

  • That way he'll be sprawled out on the floor when you come back.

    Fathers' Day (1997)

  • We found Ray first, sprawled out at our feet...

    The Night Flier (1997)

  • So no interest in why a teacher found me sprawled out on the ground?

    Death Note (2017)

  • - A truck with a flat board at the back with about six or seven boys sprawled out on it.

    On the Road (2012)

  • Charles Sr. sprawled out next to me, taking up more than his share of the bed.

    Fiction book (1996)

  • Perhaps we see Frank sprawled out asleep already in his underwear.

    Fiction book (1998)

  • What would Ben say, coming upon her sprawled out, napping in a public park?

    Fiction book (2002)

  • Sam, Molly, and Carl are sprawled out on the floor, eating from cartons of Chinese food.

    Fiction book (1990)

  • Emil at least could sleep, and he looked across at his friend sprawled out on the cot opposite him.

    Fiction book (1990)

Synonyms

to sprawl
vsto sprawl out
32 4.1

To sit or lie with arms and legs spread out

is the same meaning but often used with an added particle
to stretch out
vsto sprawl out
21 2.5

Lie down with your body straight to rest or relax

focuses on limbs spread apart rather than full body extension
to spread-eagle
vsto sprawl out
1 7.7

To place your arms and legs wide apart when standing or lying

lies or sits with limbs spread but in a more casual, less extreme way
to spraddle
vsto sprawl out
  • Archaic
8.3

To sit, stand, or move with legs spread wide

is limited to sitting or lying and is usually relaxed or careless

How Spread Out

to sprawl out
  • Informal
5 3.8
to lounge
12 2.7
to sit
∞ 1.0
to curl up
  • Informal
57 2.8

Surface Forms

sprawl out infinitive
sprawling out present participle
sprawls out third person singular
sprawled out past
sprawled out past participle

Morphology

sprawl + out

The meaning 'to lie or sit with arms and legs spread out' is directly derivable from combining 'sprawl' (to sit or lie with limbs stretched out) with the particle 'out' (indicating extension or outward position). The particle merely emphasizes/location of the posture and the verb+particle composition is a transparent, predictable pattern, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents would understand it.

Etymology

Sprawl out shows a simple picture: sprawl means to stretch the body and out means wide, like someone dropping onto a sofa with arms and legs spread in every direction and taking up space. That's why it means 'to lie or sit with arms and legs spread out in a relaxed or careless way'.