sparse

C2+ Topic:Describing Qualities

US /spɑrs/ UK /spɑːs/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

adj
thinly distributed or scarce; not dense

Vegetation was sparse on the rocky slope.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 adj · thinly distributed or... scanty scarce meager thin scatteredskimpy

Opposites

dense abundant plentiful thick crowded

Word family

Forms sparsely

Derived forms sparselysparsenesssparsity

Etymology

From Latin sparsus, past participle of spargere ('to scatter, sprinkle').

sparsus Latin spargere Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Describing Qualities

External links

# sparse

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** adj
**IPA (US):** /spɑrs/
**IPA (UK):** /spɑːs/

## Meanings
1. thinly distributed or scarce; not dense

## Examples
- Vegetation was sparse on the rocky slope.

## Synonyms
- scanty
- scarce
- meager
- thin
- scattered
- skimpy

## Antonyms
- dense
- abundant
- plentiful
- thick
- crowded

## Derived Forms
- sparsely
- sparseness
- sparsity

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: sparsus
- Root: spargere

## Etymology
From Latin sparsus, past participle of spargere ('to scatter, sprinkle').

## AI Etymology
Sparse comes from Latin sparsus, past participle of spargere ('to scatter, sprinkle'). The form is best read as a historical transfer or inheritance, with its older language material carrying the main semantic load. As an adjective, it carries the sense "thinly distributed or scarce; not dense", with the older formation still helping explain the modern use. Relevant historical forms include Latin sparsus and Latin spargere. Derivative forms include sparsely, sparseness, sparsity.

## Topics
- Describing Qualities

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