▪ I. spray, n.1
(spreɪ)
Also 4–7 spraye, 4–6 sprai, 7 sprey (8 spry).
[Of obscure origin. Connexion with sprag n.1 is uncertain.]
1. a. collect. Small or slender twigs of trees or shrubs, either as still growing or as cut off and used for fuel, etc.; fine brushwood.
| 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 11522 Gret fur he made þer aniȝt of wode & of sprai. a 1310 in Wright Lyric P. vi. 27 Bytuene Mershe ant Averil when spray biginneth to springe. 1615 W. Lawson Country Housew. Gard. (1626) 31 If these two kindes thriue, they reforme but a spray, and an vnder-growth. 1652 Wadsworth tr. Sandoval's Civ. Wars Spain 351 His souldiers..fetched a great quantitie of sprey, or bavins,..and set fire to them. 1707 Clergyman's Vade-M. (1709) 214 With old Stocks, or Trees of above 20 Years old, but some Spry or small Underwood. 1778 [W. H. Marshall] Minutes Agric. 7 Apr. 1775, As much prime wood as would, with a little spray, have made three bakers bavins. 1842 Loudon Suburban Hort. 631 Pea sticks, which are branches of trees or shrubs well furnished with spray. 1852 C. Morfit Tanning & Currying (1853) 96 Majestic trees..with spreading tortuous branches and spray. 1887 T. Hardy Woodlanders I. vii. 134 All he had required had been a few bundles of spray for his man Robert. |
b. With
the (or
that).
The sense in the first
quot. is somewhat doubtful.
| a 1300 Floriz & Bl. 275 Ho so wonede a moneþ in þat spray, Nolde him neure longen away. c 1425 Thomas of Erceld. 86 He knelyde downe appone his knee, Vndir-nethe þat grenwode spraye. 1513 Douglas æneid xii. Prol. 90 The spray bysprent with spryngand sproutis dispers. 1577 B. Googe Heresbach's Husb. ii. (1586) 62 b, All the spraye that springeth aboue the flowre, is commonly cut off. 1707 Mortimer Husb. (1721) II. 22 Being gathered Green..and the Spray stripped off in August. 1791 W. Gilpin Forest Scenery I. 106 The mode of growth in the spray, corresponds exactly with that of the larger branches, of which indeed the spray is the origin. 1823 Southey in Q. Rev. XXX. 3 The tree sheds its leaves not singly, but with the spray from which they spring. 1866 Treas. Bot. 141/1 The branches are used as fuel..; the spray for thatching. |
| fig. a 1677 Harrington Grounds & Reas. Mon. Wks. (1700) 32 Certainly these People were strangely blind..to admit the spray of such a stock. |
c. In the poetic phrase
on or upon (the) spray.
| 1375 Barbour Bruce xvi. 64 This wes in the moneth of May, Quhen byrdis syngis on the spray. c 1386 Chaucer Sir Thopas 59 The wodedowue vp on the spray She sang ful loude & clere. 1508 Dunbar Gold. Targe 51 A saill, als quhite as blossum vpon spray. 1523 Skelton Garl. Laurel 1412 How her ble was bryght as blossom on the spray. 1870 Hardy Satires of Circumstance (1914) 20 When I set out for Lyonnesse, A hundred miles away, The rime was on the spray. 1893 F. Thompson Poems 66 Oh, there were flowers in Storrington On the turf and on the spray. 1921 W. de la Mare Veil 19 Thrush and robin perched mute on spray. |
2. a. A slender shoot or twig.
| 1387 Trevisa Higden (Rolls) IV. 157 Þere herdes fond hym among mory flagges and sprayes, and sente hym to Silla. 1398 ― Barth. De P.R. xvii. viii. (Tollem. MS.), The beste [Amomum] is þat, þat is..sprad up on reed sprayes. 1503 Hawes Examp. Virt. xii. 236 Where byrdes sate on many a spray. 1567 Fenton Trag. Disc. v. (1898) I. 201 The pleasant apple, mustering..upon the heyght of the highest spraise. 1578 Lyte Dodoens vi. lxxxviii. 771 The branches be harde, and parted into other spraies. 1607 T. Walkington Opt. Glass 115 Like spraies and branches from the stemme of a tree. 1630 Drayton Muses Eliz. Nymphal iv. 111 Amongst the liuely Birds melodious Layes, As they recording sit vpon the Sprayes. 1704 Pope Pastorals, Winter 56 No more the birds shall..hearken from the sprays. 1785 G. Forster tr. Sparrman's Voy. Cape G. Hope (1786) I. 196 The frame of this arched roof..is composed of slender rods or sprays of trees. 1833 H. Martineau Brooke Farm xii. 135 A few ears dangling from the sprays for gleaners. 1854 S. Dobell Balder i. Poet. Wks. 1875 II. 12 Little window in the wall Eye-lashed with balmy sprays of honeysuckle. |
| fig. c 1400 Pilgr. Sowle (Caxton, 1483) v. ix. 100 A blessid floure out of this spray shall sprynge. 1563 Mirr. Mag., Hastings ix, None aryse To former type, but they catch vertues spraye, Which mounteth them that clyme by law⁓full waye. 1593 Shakes. 3 Hen. VI, ii. vi. 50 Who..set his murth'ring knife vnto the Roote, From whence that tender spray did sweetly spring, I meane our Princely Father. 1599 ― Hen. V, iii. v. 5 Shall a few Sprayes of vs..Spirt vp so suddenly into the Clouds, And ouer looke their Grafters? 1781 Cowper Charity 629 Thus have I sought to grace a serious lay With many a wild, indeed, but flow'ry spray. 1873 Earle Philol. Eng. Tongue (ed. 2) §593 The sprays of language are those phrasal forms which are produced by the combination of symbolic words. |
b. pl. Hazel, birch, or other twigs used in thatching.
| 1520 Churchw. Acc. St. Giles, Reading (ed. Nash) 11 For Sprayes & thatchyng of the ijo tents at the gravell pytt, ijs xj{supd}. 1677 Plot Oxfordsh. 64 In some places Wood is so scarce, that they cannot get spraies to fasten on Thatch. 1733 W. Ellis Chiltern & Vale Farm. 162 Great Plantations of Hazel, that..are also of vast Service to the Thatcher, by its Stretchers, Sprays, and Withs. 1854– in midland dialect use. |
c. A graceful shoot or twig of some flowering or fine-foliaged plant or tree, used for decoration or ornament; an artificial imitation of this.
| 1862 Catal. Internat. Exhib., Brit. II. No. 4848, Manufactured sprays, birds, leaves, seeds, and other artificial florists' materials. 1873 ‘Ouida’ Pascarel I. 64 He would never meet me without some spray of roses, or some boughs of lemon. 1885 ‘Mrs. Alexander’ At Bay v, Her first ball-dress, a delicious combination of white silk tulle and lace, with sprays of wild roses. |
d. A brooch or clip fashioned in imitation of a bouquet of flowers, or of a twig with fruit or foliage. In full,
spray brooch.
| 1803 C. Wilmot Jrnl. 6 Mar. in T. U. Sadleir Irish Peer on Continent (1920) 142 Necklaces, sprays of brilliants, towering on the head like feathers, diamond nets, combs. 1863 Mrs. Gaskell Dark Night's Work v. 64 Your pearls..were..handsome..but we must have them re-set; the sprays are old-fashioned. 1939 P. Wentworth Lonesome Road viii. 50, I should love to give her a diamond spray from Woolworth's. Ibid. xii. 73 The oak spray..two diamond oak-leaves and three acorns. 1951 Catal. of Exhibits, South Bank Exhib., Festival of Britain 39/1 Ruby and diamond spray brooch. 1966 Harper's Bazaar Sept. 76 A pair of Victorian diamond sprays in the hair..{pstlg}900. 1979 Country Life 11 Oct. Suppl. p.v., Modern diamond and emerald spray brooch. |
3. A metal casting resembling a set of twigs.
| 1831 J. Holland Manuf. Metal I. 270 When the whole has become sufficiently cooled, the boxes are opened, the spray, as the cluster of castings is called, taken out. 1843 Holtzapffel Turning I. 332 The whole mass when poured has been compared to a great fern leaf with its leaflets, and is usually called a spray. 1879 Cassell's Techn. Educ. IV. 263/1 The pattern-maker connects a number of them in a ‘spray’, i.e., a central stem, with branches springing out on either side. |
4. attrib., as
spray-bavin,
spray-drain,
spray-faggot, etc.
| 1778 [W. H. Marshall] Minutes Agric. 31 Dec. 1774, *Spray bavins..10s. a hundred. |
| 1850 Ogilvie, *Spray drain,..a drain formed by burying the spray of trees in the earth, which serves to keep open a channel. |
| 1687 Miége Gt. Fr. Dict. ii, *Spray Fagots, fagots de menu bois. 1764 Museum Rust. II. 382 The small twigs, cut from the ends of spray faggots. 1793 Young View Agric. Sussex 33 The spray-faggot of all his extensive woods being cut down as fuel for his kilns. |
| 1898 W. T. Greene Cage-Birds 59 White and *spray millet is the correct food for them [the chestnut-eared finches]. |
| 1844 Alb. Smith Adv. Mr. Ledbury (1856) I. xix. 147 He carried a long staff,..pulled from some *spray-pile. |
| a 1728 Woodward Fossils ii. 110 A Piece of *Spray Wood. c 1730 Haynes Voc. in N. & Q. (1883) VIII. 45/1 Spray wood, brush wood. 1802 Trans. Soc. Arts XX. 170 Cut all the spray wood, and make the tree a perfect skeleton, leaving all the healthy limbs. |
▪ II. spray, n.2 (
spreɪ)
Also 7–8
spry(e.
[app. related to the forms cited under spray v.2 Cf. also sprew1.] 1. a. Water blown from, or thrown up by, the waves of the sea in the form of a fine shower or mist.
| α 1621 G. Sandys Ovid's Met. ii. (1626) 228 Now tossing Seas appeare to front the sky, And wrap their curles in clouds, frotht with their spry. 1719 De Foe Crusoe i. (Globe) 42 We were immediately driven into our close Quarters to shelter us from the very Foam and Sprye of the Sea. 1750 G. Hughes Barbados 178 These trees..are chiefly planted near the sea-side to shelter the neighbouring fields..from being blasted by the salt spry of the sea. 1755 Johnson, Spray... 2. The foam of the sea, commonly written spry. 1818 Keats Endym. iv. 157 The salt sea-spry. |
| fig. 1751 Smollett Per. Pic. lxxiii, Swab the spry from your bowsprit, my good lad. |
| β 1726 Bailey (ed. 3), Spray (of the Sea), a sort of watery Mist like a small Rain, occasioned by the dashing of the Waves, which flies some Distance, and wets like a small Shower. 1789 Trotter Dis. Seamen 54 The gratings are also half covered when it blows hard, to keep out the salt spray or rain. 1813 Sir H. Davy Agric. Chem. (1814) 339 In great storms the spray of the sea has been carried more than 50 miles from the shore. 1887 Fenn Master of Ceremonies i, There had been no windy nights when the spray was torn from the tops of waves to fly in showers over the houses. |
b. Water or other liquid dispersed by impact or other means in fine mist-like particles.
| 1750 G. Hughes Barbados 124 A large fire..to burn the bark and dry up the Spry and juices that fly from them in cutting. 1824 Byron Juan xvi. ix, Like a soda bottle when its spray Has sparkled. 1837 W. Irving Capt. Bonneville II. 131 Torrents came tumbling from crag to crag, dashing into foam and spray. 1852 Mrs. Stowe Uncle Tom's C. xxviii, He almost fancied that that bright face and golden hair were looking upon him, out of the spray of the fountain. 1877 A. B. Edwards Up Nile ix. 251 Still the boats chase each other along the dark river, scattering spray from their bows. |
c. In
fig. uses.
| 1796 [see spouter 3 a]. 1837 Carlyle Fr. Rev. i. iv. iv, One vast suspended-billow of Life,—with spray scattered even to the chimney-tops! 1889 Spectator 9 Nov. 630/1 It may even be that..the vanquishers..are sending out a thick spray of roving robbers westward. |
2. orig. Med. a. A jet of medicated vapour or the like, used
esp. as a disinfectant or a deodorizer. Hence also applied to any jet of (
esp. liquid) particles emitted by an atomizer or similar device.
| 1870 Brit. Med. Jrnl. 2 July 21/1 The value of sprays in the treatment of affections of the throat and windpipe..is much hindered by the inconvenience attending the use of the apparatus... Clarke's [apparatus] produces a fine spray. 1875 Knight Dict. Mech. 2288/2 Spray,..the vapor from an atomizer. 1880 W. MacCormac Antisept. Surg. 155 It may prove useful for dressing, and where a steam spray is not available. 1891 Kipling Light that Failed viii. 146, I haven't any spray, and I never leave charcoal unfixed overnight. 1896 Allbutt's Syst. Med. I. 305 The free application of antiseptic sprays for purifying the atmosphere of sick chambers. 1963 R. Carson Silent Spring iii. 23 There were cockroaches in the house..and..a spray containing endrin was used. 1974 A. J. Huxley Plant & Planet xxviii. 337 Temperate fruit growers may apply fifteen different sprays in a season. |
b. An instrument used for applying such a jet.
| 1881 Richardson in Good Wds. XXII. 52 Any servant can at any time use the spray. 1895 Arnold & Sons' Catal. Surg. Instrum. 161 Cocaine Spray, complete. |
3. a. attrib. (in sense 1), as
spray-drop,
spray-pearl,
spray-rainbow,
spray-smoke.
| 1826 Mrs. Hemans Forest Sanct. i. lxv, Like spray-drops from the strife of torrents flung. 1860 Neale in St. Margaret's Mag. (1895) Jan. 247 The spray-rainbow some⁓times arching above my head. 1864 Lowell Fireside Trav. 286 The white spray smoke of Tivoli that drove down the valley. 1883 A. I. Menken Infelicia 32 To lay my crown of spray-pearls at his feet. |
b. Comb., as
spray-based,
spray-clouded,
spray-dabbled,
spray-decked,
spray-haired,
spray-spangled,
spray-topped,
spray-wet adjs.;
spray-like adj. and
adv.| 1832 Motherwell Poems, Witches' Joys iv, Every labouring wave..Gives them a ghastly lover To wring their white hands over, And tear their spray-wet hair In the madness of despair. 1839 Bailey Festus 158 The failing of a fountain's spray-topt stream. 1843 Ruskin Mod. Paint. I. ii. iii. iv. §6 The legitimate rain-cloud, with its ragged spray-like edges. 1849 Lever H. Templeton xx, His fair brown hair spray-washed and floating back with the breeze. 1859 K. Cornwallis New World I. 7 The spray-decked waters of the Sound. 1861 E. T. Holland in Peaks, Passes, & Glac. Ser. ii. I. 21 The one [stream] was broken and feathered in many a spray-spangled fountain. 1895 W. B. Yeats Poems 210 With blown, spray-dabbled hair. 1930 R. Campbell Adamastor 74 The rocks, spray-clouded, are your signal guns. 1939 Dylan Thomas Map of Love 4 Spray-based and rock-chested sea. 1956 P. Larkin Less Deceived 38 Rain patters on a floor that tilts and sighs. Fast-running floors, collapsing into hollows, Tower suddenly, spray-haired. |
c. attrib. in terms relating to artificial spraying or production of spray, as
spray apparatus,
spray booth,
spray can,
spray inhalation,
spray instrument,
spray job,
spray nozzle,
spray pipe,
spray process,
spray pump, etc.;
spray-gun, an apparatus for applying a liquid substance in the form of spray; an atomizer;
spray irrigation, a form of irrigation in which water is sprayed from pipes running along or above the ground and reaches the surface in the form of droplets;
spray line, a perforated pipe used in spray irrigation;
spray pond, a pool over which water is sprayed in a chamber through which air is passed, so as to cool the air or humidify it;
spray refining,
steelmaking, a continuous method of making steel in which molten iron falling in a stream is atomized by jets of oxygen and flux that combine with impurities in the droplets; hence
spray steelmaker, an installation in which spray steelmaking is carried out;
spray tower, a hollow tower in which a liquid is made to fall as a spray,
e.g. to cool it or to bring it into contact with a gas.
| 1896 Allbutt's Syst. Med. I. 305 The method is the same, whether air be used, as in the well-known hand-ball spray apparatus, or steam. |
| 1959 Times 17 Feb. 2/3 The manufacture of Industrial Equipment such as Ovens, Spraybooths. 1975 ‘R. Butler’ Where all Girls are Sweeter vi. 63 A man was spraying a car in a spray booth. |
| 1972 Times 14 Dec. 9/5 A higgledy-piggledy mixture of colours..all laid on with spray cans and felt-tipped marker pens. 1980 Times Lit. Suppl. 5 Sept. 972/4 Not only are felt-pens and spray-cans rare in Africa, but so is literacy. |
| 1920 Brass World Dec. 343 (caption) A new spray gun invention. 1944 R. Chandler Five Murderers 31 A woman..was popping at aphis [sic] with a spray-gun. 1956 ‘B. Buckingham’ Three Bad Nights xiv. 122 Battered old spray-guns with which they were sprinkling the plants. 1974 ‘S. Woods’ Done to Death 29 Mr Gillespie was pottering about in his garden with a green spray-gun in his hand. |
| 1879 St. George's Hosp. Rep. IX. 600 She was ordered spray inhalation of lactic acid..every two hours. |
| 1875 Knight Dict. Mech. 2288/2 Spray-instrument,..one for the administration of an anæsthetic or refrigerant in a finely divided liquid form. |
| 1931 Circular U.S. Dept. Agric. No. 195. 1 Recently spray-irrigation equipment, designed for the irrigation of general farm crops, has been developed in Germany. 1950 N.Z. Jrnl. Agric. LXXX. 520/1 Centrifugal pumps are most commonly used for spray irrigation. 1974 Withers & Vipond Irrigation ii. 55 Spray irrigation..is suitable for use in temperatures down to -9°C (16°F). |
| 1963 L. Deighton Horse under Water xvii. 69 The last rays of the sun did a spray job on one side of da Cunha's bony head. 1971 Engineering Apr. 95/2 (Advt.), Your problem will be solved by an enthusiastic team well versed in the study of Spray Characteristics and Patterns for any particular Sprayjob. |
| 1961 H. J. Hine Dict. Agric. Engin. 130 It is possible to divide up the methods of overhead application to field soil into spray lines, sprinklers and rainers. 1974 Withers & Vipond Irrigation ii. 54 A more elaborate spray line consists of a water pipe, about 30 mm diameter, perforated in one quadrant along its length, and mounted on light tressles. |
| 1919 Fraser & Jones Motor Vehicles & their Engines viii. 65 The suction created by the rush of air past the spray nozzle causes the gasoline to be delivered to the mixing chamber in a fine spray. 1966 Gurney & Cotter Cooling Towers iii. 62 (caption) Typical sections of cooling tower timber distribution system showing header, lateral and porcelain spray nozzle. |
| 1867–72 Burgh Mod. Marine Engin. 272/2 The spray pipes, in connection with the injection valves, are secured beyond them, within the condenser. |
| 1924 L. C. Lichty Measurement Natural Gas iii. iv. 349 Two general methods are used to cool the water, namely, the spray pond or cooling tower method. 1951 J. Jackson Cooling Towers ii. 7 Spray ponds are only suitable where a close approach to the wet-bulb temperature is not required; their main use lies in cooling water prior to discharge into a river. |
| 1881 Richardson in Gd. Words XXII. 52 For practical purposes..I think the simple spray process is the best. |
| 1880 I. L. Bird Japan I. 303 The odour of carbolic acid pervaded the whole hospital, and there were spray producers enough to satisfy Mr. Lister! |
| 1913 Chambers's Jrnl. Jan. 61/2 The stamps are moistened within the machine by a tiny spray pump. 1950 N.Z. Jrnl. Agric. May 470/1 A spray pump [for a garden]..may be of bucket or knapsack type according to personal preference. 1967 A. H. Cottrell Introd. Metallurgy xi. 141 Very recently a new steel⁓making process, spray-refining, has been developed by the British Iron and Steel Research Association. A stream of molten iron from a blast furnace falls through a ring of jets, which breaks it up into droplets,..and a second ring of jets which inject powdered lime and other fluxes. 1975 Steel USSR V. 493 The optimum working pressure in the chamber for carrying out spray refining of pig iron in a vacuum is 150 mmHg. |
| 1965 Economist 25 Dec. 1437/2 (heading) Spray steelmaking. 1966 Ibid. 15 Oct. 293/3 As operated at present, the spray steelmaker is far from continuous: it only runs during part of a blast furnace tap and its capacity is limited by the size of the ladle that is pushed underneath. 1966 Observer 16 Oct. 9/1 The revolutionary ‘spray’ steel-making process, developed by the British Iron and Steel Research Association in Sheffield,..has all the makings of a major technological advance. 1976 Metals Abstr. IX. 1750/2 (heading) An investigation into oxidation processes occurring during spray steelmaking using naturally alloyed pig iron. |
| 1937 T. K. Sherwood Absorption & Extraction vi. 168 Spray towers are best suited to the absorption of very soluble gases. 1951 J. Jackson Cooling Towers ii. 7 Like the cooling pond and the spray pond, the spray tower is probably suitable only for easy cooling duties. 1979 A. L. Lydersen Fluid Flow & Heat Transfer vi. 155 Spray towers are the simplest type of gas scrubbers. |
d. Special
Comb. relating to natural spraying or the production of spray, as
spray region, the region at the top of the atmosphere where molecules are so far apart that their paths are determined by gravity and upward moving ones are likely to escape into space;
spray zone, that area near the sea or a waterfall that is often moistened by spray.
| 1949 Jrnl. Brit. Interplanetary Soc. VIII. 255a While it is generally believed that the Zodiacal Light is due to extra-terrestrial particles, it is possible that the scattering particles are molecules in the ‘spray’ region, very high up in the Earth's atmosphere. 1963 G. M. B. Dobson Exploring Atmosphere i. 8 The top of this spray region, which is the top of the atmosphere, is quite indefinite. |
| 1946 Ecology XXVII. 321/1 These communities of the spray zone are present only in situations either exposed directly to spray or very well protected from desiccation. 1976 New Phytologist LXXVI. 361 Two contrasting coastal habitats which create salinity problems for species occupying them are the spray zone and the salt marsh. |
▪ III. † spray, n.3 Obs. rare.
[Of obscure origin: cf. spraich n.] Outcry.
| 13.. K. Alis. 2801 (Laud MS.), Spray, and grade, and dismayeyng; Wymmen shrikyng, gyrles gradyng. Ibid. 7882 Michel spray, mychel gradyng, Michel weep, mychel waylyng. |
▪ IV. † spray, n.4 Obs. Also
sprey.
[var. of spree n.] A spree or drinking-bout; frolic.
| 1813 Ann. Reg., Chron. 59/2 He said he had had a fine sprey, and was burnt to death in the inside. 1819 Scott Leg. Montrose Introd., The Sergeant was apt to tarry longer at the Wallace Arms..than was consistent with strict temperance... After such sprays, as he called them, were over [etc.]. 1826 J. Wilson Noct. Ambr. Wks. 1855 I. 206 A feather that's got rumpled by sport and spray. |
▪ V. † spray, v.1 Obs. Also 5
spra.
[? Related to spray n.1] intr. To spring, take rise.
| c 1425 Thomas of Erceld. 335 And mekill bale sall after spraye, Whare joye & blysse was wonte to bee. c 1460 Towneley Myst. xiv. 449 In bedlem, land of Iuda,..Out of it a duke shall spra. Ibid. xvi. 219 Of bedlem a gracyus lord shall spray. |
▪ VI. † spray, v.2 Obs.—1 [ad. MDu. sprayen, spraeyen, = MHG. spræjen, spreien, in the same sense.] trans. To sprinkle.
| 1527 Andrew Brunswyke's Distyll. Waters L iv b, Flesshe or other thynges sprayed with the same water abydeth longe tyme good. |
▪ VII. spray, v.3 rare.
[f. spray n.1] 1. trans. To furnish with sprays or twigs.
| 1572 J. Bossewell Armorie ii. 88 b, And the hande highte Palma, when the fingers benne streithte foorthe, as it were boughes, or braunches sprayed. |
2. intr. To grow
out into sprays or twigs; to ramify.
| 1872 C. King Sierra Nevada ii. 41 Hugh branches which quickly turn down, and spray out. 1891 J. Winsor Columbus vi. 131 It became clear that the currents of the Atlantic..sprayed in a circling fringe in the North Atlantic. |
▪ VIII. spray, v.4 (
spreɪ)
[f. spray n.2] 1. trans. a. To diffuse or send in the form of spray; to scatter in minute drops.
| 1829 Carlyle Misc. (1857) II. 91 A strong beam of light..sprayed itself into innumerable sparks. 1852 M. Arnold ‘Ye Storm-winds’ etc., 49 Where the nich'd snow-bed sprays down Its powdery fall. 1881 Gd. Words XXII. 51 The solution may be..sprayed freely into the safe. 1897 Allbutt's Syst. Med. IV. 685 A 5 per cent. solution of menthol should be sprayed up the nostril. |
b. fig.| 1923 H. G. Wells Men Like Gods iii. iv. 284 From some slope above a lark had gone heavenward, spraying sweet notes. 1924 R. Campbell Flaming Terrapin ii. 23 The trees came crashing down lengthwise, And sprayed their flustered birds into the skies. 1976 E. Dunphy Only a Game? iv. 125 They were giving us space to come further forward, and giving us room to turn and spray it about. |
2. a. To sprinkle with or as with spray; to wet with fine particles of water or other liquid,
esp. by means of a special instrument or apparatus.
| 1861 Ld. Lytton & Fane Tannhäuser 57 While from beneath The creeping billow of calamity Sprays all his hair with cold. 1884 E. P. Roe Nat. Ser. Story ix, The foliage was..sprayed by a garden syringe. 1897 Allbutt's Syst. Med. IV. 678 An excellent plan of treatment is..to spray the nose with one of the liquid paraffins. |
b. transf. To subject to a rapid succession or shower of bullets, shot, etc.
| 1926 T. E. Lawrence Seven Pillars vi. lxxvii. 404 Wood..got the Indians ready to spray the guard tent. 1977 C. Forbes Avalanche Express xv. 152 The man behind the gun..sprayed the Wagon-Lit... A hail of bullets thudded into their compartment. |
3. absol. a. To scatter or throw up spray.
| 1891 Cent. Dict. s.v., The instrument will either spout or spray. 1906 Blackw. Mag. Nov. 664/1 Below, the Porto, a fine trouting stream,..foams and sprays and chafes. |
b. Of a male cat: to mark its environment with the smell of its urine, as an attractant to the female.
| [1949 M. C. Gay How to live with a Cat xi. 175 A tomcat sprays whiffs of cat smell about in the hope of luring a maiden feline to his moon-bespattered lair.] 1954 L. F. Whitney Compl. Bk. Cat Care xvi. 199 The males specifically lose their potent and..obnoxious odour, stop spraying and use their pans or boxes. 1967 A. Lewin Unaltered Cat ii. iv. 117 If he's frustrated, he'll begin to spray. It's an unpleasant odour, except, of course to a female cat. |
4. intr. To issue or rise as spray.
| 1895 Funk's Stand. Dict. s.v., He caused the perfume to spray. |
Hence
sprayed ppl. a.1| 1892 Pall Mall G. 3 May 6/3 The argument that there is not the slightest danger of poisoning in using sprayed apples. |