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splay

(splā)

v. splayed, splay·ing, splays

v.tr.

1. To spread (the limbs, for example) out or apart: The dog rolled on its back and splayed its legs.

2. To make slanting or sloping; bevel: splayed the edge of the tabletop.

3. To dislocate (a bone). Used of an animal.

v.intr.

1. To be spread out or apart: After work, he splayed out on the couch.

2. To slant or slope.

adj.

1. Spread or turned out.

2. Clumsy or clumsily formed; awkward.

n.
Architecture

An oblique angle or bevel given to the sides of an opening in a wall so that the opening is wider on one side of the wall than on the other.

[Middle English splayen, short for displayen; see DISPLAY.]

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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