Standard Lemma guide

spatter

noun · verb · 16 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • General-American: /ˈspætɚ/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • rhymes with -ætə(ɹ)
  • CMU ARPABET: S P AE1 T ER0 Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

A spray or shower of droplets hitting a surface.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • 1763, Richard Bentley, Patriotism, a Mock-Heroic, London: M. Hinxman, Canto 5, pp. 65-66, As a rough Water-Dog, New-England’s Breed, Fresh plaister’d from some Pond with Mud and Weed, Round from his Fleece the dirty Puddle shakes Rejoicing in the Spatter that he makes:

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

A spot or spots of a substance spattered on a surface.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • There was what looked like a spatter of blood on one wall.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

The sound of droplets hitting a surface.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

noun

Meaning 4

A burst or series of sounds resembling the sound of droplets hitting a surface.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: figuratively

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

noun

Meaning 5

A collection of objects scattered like droplets splashed onto a surface.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: figuratively

Examples

  • 1988, Don DeLillo, Libra, New York: Viking, Part 2, “12 August,” p. 270, The attendant had a droopy lower lip, a rust-tone complexion with a spatter of freckles across the cheekbones [...]

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

6

verb

Meaning 6

To splash (someone or something) with small droplets.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: transitive

Examples

  • When my wet chihuahua shook himself, I was spattered with smelly water.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: spurt

Antonyms: none provided

7

verb

Meaning 7

To cover, or lie upon (something) by having been scattered, as if by splashing.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: figuratively, transitive

Examples

  • 1955, Samuel Beckett and Patrick Bowles (translators), Molloy by Samuel Beckett, in Three Novels, London: Calder, 1994, p. 128, The roof’s serrated ridge, the single chimney-stack with its four flues, stood out faintly against the sky spattered with a few dim stars.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: strew

Antonyms: none provided

8

verb

Meaning 8

To distribute (a liquid) by sprinkling; to sprinkle around.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: transitive

Examples

  • to spatter blood

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: asperge, asperse, besprinkle, sprinkle

Antonyms: none provided

9

verb

Meaning 9

To send out or disperse (something) as if in droplets.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: figuratively, transitive

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

10

verb

Meaning 10

To send out small droplets; to splash in small droplets (on or against something).

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: intransitive

Examples

  • Make sure the pieces of fish are dry before you put them into the hot oil so that it doesn’t spatter.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

11

verb

Meaning 11

To injure by aspersion; to defame.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: figuratively, obsolete, transitive

Examples

  • 1647, John Hall, “A Genethliacon to the Infant Muse of his dearest Friend” in Poems, London: J. Rothwell, Let envy spatter what it can, This Embryon will prove a man.
  • 1728, John Gay, The Beggar’s Opera, Dublin: George Risk et al., Act II, Scene 13, “Good-morrow, Gossip Joan,” p. 42, Why how now, Madam Flirt? If you thus must chatter; And are for flinging Dirt, Let’s try who best can spatter;
  • 1770, George Saville Carey, “To a Friend” in Analects in Verse and Prose, London: P. Shatwell et al., Volume 2, p. 171, I Wrote a letter long ago, But did not like it, you must know, So rather chose to take my time, And write my own defence in rhime, Though not in your be-crabbed stile, To spatter, threaten, and revile;

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: asperse, denigrate, muddy, assassinate, backbite, badmouth, befoul, belibel, besmirch, besmear, bewray, blacken, blame, blaze, blemish, blot, blur, calumniate, calumny, chat shit, chat shite, cloud, defame, demonize, deprave, depreciate, detract, dirty, discredit, disgrace, disparage, disrepute, diss, drag through the mud, forgab, forspeak, foul, infamize, lampoon, libel, malign, monsterize, reproach, revile, scandal, shit-talk, slag, slander, smear, smirch, spatter, spot, speak ill of, stab, stain, sully, talk shit, talk shite, talk trash, tarnish, torch, traduce, trash-talk, unflatter, vilify, vilipend, villainize, wrong

Antonyms: none provided

12

noun

Meaning 12

the act of splashing a (liquid) substance on a surface

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: spattering, splash, splashing, splattering

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: painting

13

noun

Meaning 13

the noise of something spattering or sputtering explosively

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • he heard a spatter of gunfire

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: spattering, splatter, splattering, sputter, splutter, sputtering

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: noise

14

verb

Meaning 14

dash a liquid upon or against

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • The mother splashed the baby's face with water

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: splatter, plash, splash, splosh, swash

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: scatter, sprinkle, dot, dust, disperse

Narrower terms: puddle, slosh, slush, slosh around, slush around

15

verb

Meaning 15

spot, splash, or soil

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • The baby spattered the bib with food

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: bespatter

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: spot, fleck, blob, blot

16

verb

Meaning 16

rain gently

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • It has only sprinkled, but the roads are slick

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: sprinkle, spit, patter, pitter-patter

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: rain, rain down

History

Etymology

Probably from Middle Low German or Dutch spatten (“to spout, burst”) + -er (frequentative suffix). Related to spit (“saliva”).

Across languages

Translations

47 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Bulgarian: пръски (prǎski) — a spray or shower of droplets
  • German: Schauer — a spray or shower of droplets
  • German: Regen — a spray or shower of droplets
  • German: Niederprasseln — a spray or shower of droplets
  • German: Wolke — a spray or shower of droplets
  • German: Spritzer — a spot of a substance spattered on a surface
  • German: Dreckspritzer — a spot of a substance spattered on a surface
  • German: Dreckfleck — a spot of a substance spattered on a surface
  • German: Spritzfleck — a spot of a substance spattered on a surface
  • Bulgarian: барабанене (barabanene) — the sound of droplets hitting a surface
  • German: Trommeln — the sound of droplets hitting a surface
  • German: Prasseln — the sound of droplets hitting a surface
  • Swedish: smatter — the sound of droplets hitting a surface
  • Swedish: regnsmatter — the sound of droplets hitting a surface
  • Arabic: ترشيش — to splash with small droplets
  • Arabic: طرطشة — to splash with small droplets
  • Bulgarian: изпръсквам (izprǎskvam) — to splash with small droplets
  • Cebuano: pisikpisik — to splash with small droplets
  • Chinese Mandarin: 濺上 /溅上 (jiànshàng) — to splash with small droplets
  • Esperanto: surŝprucigi — to splash with small droplets
  • Finnish: pirskottaa — to splash with small droplets
  • Finnish: pirskotella — to splash with small droplets
  • French: asperger — to splash with small droplets
  • German: bespritzen — to splash with small droplets
  • Japanese: はねかける (hanakakeru) — to splash with small droplets
  • Korean: 튀기다 — to splash with small droplets
  • Māori: paratī — to splash with small droplets
  • Māori: uwhiuwhi — to splash with small droplets
  • Māori: ehuehu — to splash with small droplets
  • Portuguese: salpicar — to splash with small droplets
  • Quechua: ch'aqchuy — to splash with small droplets
  • Russian: обры́згивать (obrýzgivatʹ) — to splash with small droplets
  • Russian: обры́згать (obrýzgatʹ) — to splash with small droplets
  • Spanish: salpicar — to splash with small droplets
  • Spanish: rociar — to splash with small droplets
  • Swedish: stänka — to splash with small droplets
  • Bulgarian: пръскам (prǎskam) — to distribute by sprinkling; to sprinkle around
  • Finnish: roiskia — to distribute by sprinkling; to sprinkle around
  • Finnish: roiskia ympäriinsä — to distribute by sprinkling; to sprinkle around
  • Finnish: roiskuttaa — to distribute by sprinkling; to sprinkle around
  • German: spritzen — to distribute by sprinkling; to sprinkle around
  • German: sprühen — to distribute by sprinkling; to sprinkle around
  • Spanish: salpicar — to distribute by sprinkling; to sprinkle around
  • Bulgarian: очерням (očernjam) — to injure by aspersion, defame
  • Bulgarian: позоря (pozorja) — to injure by aspersion, defame
  • Finnish: parjata — to injure by aspersion, defame
  • German: besudeln — to injure by aspersion, defame