verb
disperse
dih-SPURS
verb
1
To scatter or spread out in different directions.
"The crowd began to disperse once the concert ended."
"A gentle breeze dispersed the smoke within minutes."
2
To spread information or resources widely.
"Leaflets were dispersed throughout the neighborhood before the vote."
How to Use Disperse
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishTo scatter or spread out, rather than stay grouped together.
Common mistake
Don't confuse with "disburse" (to pay out money) — they sound alike but mean very different things.
Easily confused with
disburse
Common pairings
disperse a crowd
disperse quickly
widely dispersed
Word Forms
more disperse comparative, dispersed past tense, disperses singular, most disperse superlative
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The crowd began to _____ once the concert ended.
Etymology
From Latin dispergere, "to scatter about" — from dis- ("apart") + spargere ("to scatter"), the same root as "sparse".