sparse

  • 1sparse´ly — sparse «spahrs», adjective, spars|er, spars|est. 1. thinly scattered; occurring here and there: »The sparse population of the country, sparse hair; ... an unorganised mob thick in one place, sparse in another (Walter Besant). SYNONYM(S): See syn …

    Useful english dictionary

  • 2Sparse — Sparse, a. [Compar. {Sparser}; superl. {Sparsest}.] [L. sparsus, p. p. of spargere to strew, scatter. Cf. {Asperse}, {Disperse}.] 1. Thinly scattered; set or planted here and there; not being dense or close together; as, a sparse population.… …

    The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • 3sparse — [spa:s US spa:rs] adj [Date: 1700 1800; : Latin; Origin: sparsus spread out , from the past participle of spargere to scatter ] existing only in small amounts ▪ his sparse brown hair ▪ rural areas with sparse population >sparsely adv ▪ a… …

    Dictionary of contemporary English

  • 4sparse — [ spars ] adjective existing in small amounts, or very spread out: Higher up the mountain, houses became sparse. ╾ sparse|ly adverb: a sparsely populated country …

    Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • 5sparse — sparse·ly; sparse·ness; sparse; …

    English syllables

  • 6Sparse — Sparse, v. t. [L. sparsus, p. p. of spargere to scatter.] To scatter; to disperse. [Obs.] Spenser. [1913 Webster] …

    The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • 7sparse — index barren, deficient, infrequent, insufficient, petty, scarce, sporadic Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton …

    Law dictionary

  • 8sparse — (adj.) 1727, from L. sparsus scattered, pp. of spargere to scatter, spread, from PIE root * (s)pregh to jerk, scatter (Cf. Skt. parjanya rain, rain god, Avestan fra sparega branch, twig, lit. that which is jerked off a tree, O.N. freknur freckles …

    Etymology dictionary

  • 9sparse — *meager, spare, exiguous, scanty, scant, skimpy, scrimpy Analogous words: scattered, dispersed (see SCATTER): sporadic, occasional, infrequent, uncommon: *thin, slim, slender Antonyms: dense Contrasted words: *close, thick, compact …

    New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • 10sparse — [adj] very few and scattered dispersed, exiguous, few and far between, inadequate, infrequent, meager, occasional, poor, rare, scant, scanty, scarce, scrimpy, skimpy, spare, sporadic, thin, uncommon; concepts 762,789 Ant. full, lush, plentiful …

    New thesaurus