What Is The Past Tense Of Spread?
The past tense of “spread” is “spread“. Like the past tense of “reset”, the past tense and past participle of spread remain the same as the base form, so you can easily remember them.
Check out the below table for more verb forms of spread:
Base Form/Infinitive Form (V1) | spread |
Present Form/3rd Person/Singular Form | spreads |
Past Simple Tense Form (V2) | spread |
Past Participle Form (V3) | spread |
Present Participle/Gerund | spreading |
How To Pronounce “Spread” Correctly?
The word “spread” is pronounced as /spred/. Make sure to stress the first syllable “spread” and let the “d” sound be clearly heard at the end.
You can refer to the table below for more details:
Verb Forms | Pronunciation | |
British English spelling | American English language | |
spread | /spred/ | /spred/ |
spread
(V2) |
/spred/ | /spred/ |
spread
(V3) |
/spred/ | /spred/ |
spreading | /ˈspredɪŋ/ | /ˈspredɪŋ/ |
How to say “spread” exactly? Check out this video:
What Are The Definitions Of Spread? How To Use It?
We use the past tense “spread” to talk about something that occurred, happened, and was completed in the past.
Below are the meanings of the verb spread:
- To affect or make something affect more people and become known by a larger audience.
Example: In 1990, the game spread rapidly, reaching more and more people across the globe.
- To cover or make something cover an increasing area.
Example: Last month, the wildfire spread quickly, covering a larger area and posing a serious threat to nearby communities.
- To cause somebody or something to be present in various locations.
Example: During the conference, the organizers spread attendees throughout different breakout rooms.
- To put a substance on a surface (See the past tense of put here)
Example: Yesterday, she spread a layer of peanut butter on bread, preparing it for baking.
- To open something folded, allowing it to cover a larger area.
Example: In the morning, he unfolded the map, and it spread out, revealing a detailed view of the entire city.
- To arrange objects to cover a large area and make them easily visible.
Example: The artist spread his sculptures across the gallery yesterday, capturing everyone’s attention.
- To use fingers on an electronic device to enlarge an image as if bringing it closer.
Example: Using two fingers, she pinched and spread the image on her phone screen, zooming in for a closer view.
- To move arms, legs, fingers, etc., far away from each other.
Example: During last week’s yoga class, participants spread their arms, legs, and fingers far apart in various poses.
- To separate something into parts and distribute them among different times or different people.
Example: Last year, the company spread the workload across different departments to ensure efficiency.
Exercises
FAQs
Is “Spreaded” A Word?
No. “Spreaded” is not considered a standard word in English. It is an incorrect conjugation of “spread” that results from applying regular verb conjugation rules to this irregular verb.
Are There Any Idiomatic Expressions Of “Spread”?
Yes. Below are some idioms of “spread”:
Spread your net: consider many different options or search in various places, especially when trying to find someone or something.
Example: Jane is looking for a new job, so she spreads her net and applies to various companies to maximize her chances.
Spread your wings: to be independent to explore new opportunities or experiences, often by leaving one’s comfort zone.
Example: After graduating from college, she decided to spread her wings and travel the world to gain new perspectives.
Spread the word: to tell other people about something.
Example: We need to spread the word about the charity event.
Spread yourself too thin: take on too many tasks, so you do not do any of them well.
What Does “Spread (Yourself) Out” Mean?
- To stretch your body
Example: She splayed her arms and legs to spread her body after sitting at her desk for hours.
- To separate from other people to cover a larger space
Example: As the crowd grew, people began to scatter and spread out to cover more ground.

His name is Benjamin Essek – The founder of Grammar Wiki. He is an English native speaker and has joined many English classes, learning communities to support other people with this common language as well.