Bysurface analysis,spread +-ing.
spreading
- presentparticiple andgerund ofspread
1941 October, F. S. Bond, “The Railways of China”, inRailway Magazine, page440:And so, unfortunately, this great andspreading network of railways, that recently showed such promise as a major instrument in the modern development of China, must be left for the time being in the melting-pot of Armageddon.
2013 May 10, Audrey Garric, “Urban canopies let nature bloom”, inThe Guardian Weekly[1], volume188, number22, page30:As towns continue to grow, replanting vegetation has become a form of urban utopia and green roofs arespreading fast. Last year 1m square metres of plant-covered roofing was built in France, as much as in the US, and 10 times more than in Germany, the pioneer in this field.
spreading (countable anduncountable,pluralspreadings)
- The act by which something is spread.
1991, Samuel D. Robbins,Wisconsin Birdlife: Population & Distribution Past & Present, page579:Small numbers [of meadowlarks] remain on farms in the southern counties throughout the winter, usually relying on fresh manurespreadings for food when snow covers the fields.
act by which something is spread
Blend ofspeed +reading.
spreading (uncountable)
- (debating slang) The act ofspreading(speedreading).
2017 September 26, Jack McCordick, “The Corrosion of High School Debate—And How It Mirrors American Politics”, inAmerica[2], New York, N.Y.: America Press Inc.,→ISSN,→OCLC, archived fromthe original on2023-06-21:Chief among the strategies exploiting this rule was "spreading" (a combination of "speed" and "reading"), where debaters would rattle off arguments at a blistering pace. Their speeches often exceeded 300 words per minute. (A conversational pace is about 60 per minute.)
2022 September, Tess McNulty, “Both Sides Now”, inHarper's Magazine[3], New York, N.Y.: Harper's Magazine Foundation,→ISSN,→OCLC, archived fromthe original on2023-03-23:The NSDA currently boasts more than one hundred and fifty thousand student participants (per affiliated team rosters), many of whom compete in Lincoln–Douglas or policy. The activities are distinct in structure—policy is two-on-two—but they operate similarly on the national circuit, and involvespreading and other experimental tactics.
spreading
- presentparticiple andgerund ofspread
