disperse

American  

[dih-spurs] / dɪˈspɜrs /

verb (used with object)

dispersed, dispersing

1. to drive or send off in various directions; scatter.

   to disperse a crowd.

   Antonyms:

   collect, combine

2. to spread widely; disseminate.

   to disperse knowledge.

   Synonyms:

   broadcast, sow

3. to dispel; cause to vanish.

   The wind dispersed the fog.

4. Physical Chemistry. to cause (particles) to separate uniformly throughout a solid, liquid, or gas.

5. Optics. to subject (light) to dispersion.

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verb (used without object)

dispersed, dispersing

1. to separate and move apart in different directions without order or regularity; become scattered.

   The crowd dispersed.

2. to be dispelled; be scattered out of sight; vanish.

   The smoke dispersed into the sky.

   Synonyms:

   evanesce, disappear

adjective

1. Physical Chemistry. noting the dispersed particles in a dispersion.

disperse British  

/ dɪˈspɜːsɪdlɪ, dɪˈspɜːs /

verb

1. to scatter; distribute over a wide area

2. to dissipate or cause to dissipate

3. to leave or cause to leave a gathering, often in a random manner

4. to separate or be separated by dispersion

5. (tr) to diffuse or spread (news, information, etc)

6. to separate (particles) throughout a solid, liquid, or gas, as in the formation of a suspension or colloid

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adjective

1. of or consisting of the particles in a colloid or suspension

   disperse phase

Related Words

See scatter.

Other Word Forms

• dispersedly adverb
• disperser noun
• dispersibility noun
• dispersible adjective
• predisperse verb (used with object)
• redisperse verb
• undispersed adjective
• undispersing adjective
• well-dispersed adjective

Etymology

Origin of disperse

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English dispersen, disparsen (from Middle French disperser, ) from Latin dispersus (past participle of dispergere ), equivalent to di- di- ² + -sper(g)- “scatter” (stem of -spergere, combining form of spargere “to scatter, strew”) + -sus past participle suffix

Explanation

To make a crowd at a party disperse, you could take away the food, turn off the music and ask for volunteers to clean up. Disperse is to spread out people or things, making them move in different directions. Imagine yourself standing on a basketball court holding a cup packed tight with marbles. If you turn it over, the marbles will disperse across the floor, moving away from you in all directions. Another word for this is scatter. Don't confuse this word with disburse, which means to distribute money. Remember that false friends disperse when you cease to disburse.

Example Sentences

The spiders disperse themselves by “ballooning,” in which spiderlings release silk that catches in the wind, letting them travel.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 9, 2026

In a statement on Thursday, a gardaí spokesperson said the force was "moving to an enforcement phase" unless those blocking access to critical infrastructure "desist and disperse".

From BBC • Apr. 9, 2026

What are some fair ways for a later-in-life marriage to disperse wealth or plan for end of life?

From MarketWatch • Mar. 16, 2026

Part of what makes air power such a potent tool, she said, is that it prevents enemy forces from being able to concentrate safely, and when the enemy forces disperse, they lose their offensive power.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 9, 2026

All this happened in about the time that it would take a sixpenny rocket to start off with its fiery swish, bend down from its climax and disperse itself in thunder and coloured stars.

From "The Once and Future King" by T. H. White

Related Words

• break up
• circulate
• diffuse
• disappear
• disband
• discharge
• dislodge
• dispel
• dissipate
• dissolve
• scatter
• separate
• spray
• spread
• vanish