verb / noun

scatter

SKAT-er/ˈskætər/

Dispersal in different directions.

The gardener scatters seeds in a spreading fan across the bare earth.

An older Black woman gardener in a mustard overshirt casts a handful of seeds outward over a broad patch of bare earth. Her open hand has just released the seeds, which form a clearly spreading fan in different directions across the ground. Realistic hand anatomy, simple sparse garden edge, no lettering or arrows.

Etymology

scatterMiddle Englishto squander; disperse

Middle English scateren covered squandering and dispersing. Its possible connection with shatter links the words through their shared older meaning of scattering or throwing things about.

In context

EcoTraining TV0:37

they leap and scatter in all directions when being attacked to confuse the predator

Learn the facts: All you need to know about Impala | EcoTraining

More examples

A scatter of crumbs covers the kitchen counter.
She scatters seeds over the bare soil.
Tiny droplets scatter light in all directions.

Forms

scatter · scatters · scattered · scattering

Similar words

disperse: Emphasizes moving apart or breaking up a concentration.
strew: Means to scatter things loosely over a surface.
spread: Can describe even coverage rather than an irregular distribution.