The difference between Mean and Spread

When used as nouns, mean means a method or course of action used to achieve some result, whereas spread means the act of spreading.

When used as verbs, mean means to intend, to plan (to do), whereas spread means to stretch out, open out (a material etc.) so that it more fully covers a given area of space.

Mean is also adjective with the meaning: common.

check bellow for the other definitions of Mean and Spread

  1. Mean as a verb (transitive):

    To intend. To intend, to plan (to do); to have as one's intention. To have intentions of a given kind. To intend (something) for a given purpose or fate; to predestine.

    Examples:

    "I didn't mean to knock your tooth out."

    "I mean to go to Baddeck this summer."

    "I meant to take the car in for a smog check, but it slipped my mind."

    "Don't be angry; she meant well."

    "Actually this desk was meant for the subeditor."

    "Man was not meant to question such things."

  2. Mean as a verb (transitive):

    To convey meaning. To convey (a given sense); to signify, or indicate (an object or idea). Of a word, symbol etc: to have reference to, to signify. Of a person (or animal etc): to intend to express, to imply, to hint at, to allude.

    Examples:

    "The sky is red this morning—does that mean we're in for a storm?"

    "What does this hieroglyph mean?"

    "I'm afraid I don't understand what you mean."

    "He is a little different, [[if you know what I mean if you know what I mean]]."

  3. Mean as a verb (transitive):

    To have conviction in (something said or expressed); to be sincere in (what one says).

    Examples:

    "Does she really mean what she said to him last night?"

    "Say what you mean and mean what you say."

  4. Mean as a verb (transitive):

    To result in; to bring about.

    Examples:

    "One faltering step means certain death."

  5. Mean as a verb (transitive):

    To be important (to).

    Examples:

    "My home life means a lot to me."

  1. Mean as a verb (Ireland, UK, _, regional):

    To lament.

  1. Mean as an adjective (obsolete):

    Common; general.

  2. Mean as an adjective:

    Of a common or low origin, grade, or quality; common; humble.

    Examples:

    "a man of mean parentage / a mean abode"

  3. Mean as an adjective:

    Low in quality or degree; inferior; poor; shabby.

    Examples:

    "a mean appearance / mean dress"

  4. Mean as an adjective:

    Without dignity of mind; destitute of honour; low-minded; spiritless; base.

    Examples:

    "a mean motive"

  5. Mean as an adjective:

    Of little value or account; worthy of little or no regard; contemptible; despicable.

  6. Mean as an adjective (chiefly, UK):

    Ungenerous; stingy; tight-fisted.

    Examples:

    "He's so mean. I've never seen him spend so much as five pounds on presents for his children."

  7. Mean as an adjective:

    Disobliging; pettily offensive or unaccommodating; small.

  8. Mean as an adjective:

    Selfish; acting without consideration of others; unkind.

    Examples:

    "It was mean to steal the girl's piggy bank, but he just ''had'' to get uptown and he had no cash of his own."

  9. Mean as an adjective:

    Causing or intending to cause intentional harm; bearing ill will towards another; cruel; malicious.

    Examples:

    "Watch out for her, she's mean. I said good morning to her, and she punched me in the nose."

  10. Mean as an adjective:

    Powerful; fierce; harsh; damaging.

    Examples:

    "It must have been a mean typhoon that levelled this town."

  11. Mean as an adjective:

    Accomplished with great skill; deft; hard to compete with.

    Examples:

    "Your mother can roll a mean cigarette."

    "He hits a mean backhand."

  12. Mean as an adjective (informal, often, childish):

    Difficult, tricky.

    Examples:

    "This problem is mean!"

  1. Mean as an adjective:

    Having the mean (see noun below) as its value.

  2. Mean as an adjective (obsolete):

    Middling; intermediate; moderately good, tolerable.

  1. Mean as a noun (now, chiefly, in the plural):

    A method or course of action used to achieve some result.

  2. Mean as a noun (obsolete, in the singular):

    An intermediate step or intermediate steps.

  3. Mean as a noun:

    Something which is intermediate or in the middle; an intermediate value or range of values; a medium.

  4. Mean as a noun (music, now, historical):

    The middle part of three-part polyphonic music; now specifically, the alto part in polyphonic music; an alto instrument.

  5. Mean as a noun (statistics):

    The average of a set of values, calculated by summing them together and dividing by the number of terms; the arithmetic mean.

  6. Mean as a noun (mathematics):

    Any function of multiple variables that satisfies certain properties and yields a number representative of its arguments; or, the number so yielded; a measure of central tendency.

  7. Mean as a noun (mathematics):

    Either of the two numbers in the middle of a conventionally presented proportion, as 2 and 3 in 1:2=3:6.

  1. Spread as a verb (transitive):

    To stretch out, open out (a material etc.) so that it more fully covers a given area of space.

    Examples:

    "He spread his newspaper on the table."

  2. Spread as a verb (transitive):

    To extend (individual rays, limbs etc.); to stretch out in varying or opposing directions.

    Examples:

    "I spread my arms wide and welcomed him home."

  3. Spread as a verb (transitive):

    To disperse, to scatter or distribute over a given area.

    Examples:

    "I spread the rice grains evenly over the floor."

  4. Spread as a verb (intransitive):

    To proliferate; to become more widely present, to be disseminated.

  5. Spread as a verb (transitive):

    To disseminate; to cause to proliferate, to make (something) widely known or present.

    Examples:

    "The missionaries quickly spread their new message across the country."

  6. Spread as a verb (intransitive):

    To take up a larger area or space; to expand, be extended.

    Examples:

    "I dropped my glass; the water spread quickly over the tiled floor."

  7. Spread as a verb (transitive):

    To smear, to distribute in a thin layer.

    Examples:

    "She liked to spread butter on her toast while it was still hot."

  8. Spread as a verb (transitive):

    To cover (something) with a thin layer of some substance, as of butter.

    Examples:

    "He always spreads his toast with peanut butter and strawberry jam."

  9. Spread as a verb:

    To prepare; to set and furnish with provisions.

    Examples:

    "to spread a table"

  10. Spread as a verb (intransitive, slang):

    To open one's legs, especially for sexual favours.

  1. Spread as a noun:

    The act of spreading.

  2. Spread as a noun:

    Something that has been spread.

  3. Spread as a noun (cartomancy):

    A layout, pattern or design of cards arranged for a reading.

  4. Spread as a noun:

    An expanse of land.

  5. Spread as a noun:

    A large tract of land used to raise livestock; a cattle ranch.

  6. Spread as a noun:

    A piece of material used as a cover (such as a bedspread).

  7. Spread as a noun:

    A large meal, especially one laid out on a table.

  8. Spread as a noun (bread, etc.):

    Any form of food designed to be spread, such as butters or jams.

  9. Spread as a noun (prison, _, slang, uncountable):

    Food improvised by inmates from various ingredients to relieve the tedium of prison food.

    Examples:

    "synonyms swole"

  10. Spread as a noun:

    An item in a newspaper or magazine that occupies more than one column or page.

  11. Spread as a noun:

    Two facing pages in a book, newspaper etc.

  12. Spread as a noun:

    A numerical difference.

  13. Spread as a noun (business, economics):

    The difference between the wholesale and retail prices.

  14. Spread as a noun (trading, economics, finance):

    The difference between the price of a futures month and the price of another month of the same commodity.

  15. Spread as a noun (trading, finance):

    The purchase of a futures contract of one delivery month against the sale of another futures delivery month of the same commodity.

  16. Spread as a noun (trading, finance):

    The purchase of one delivery month of one commodity against the sale of that same delivery month of a different commodity.

  17. Spread as a noun (trading):

    An arbitrage transaction of the same commodity in two markets, executed to take advantage of a profit from price discrepancies.

  18. Spread as a noun (trading):

    The difference between bidding and asking price.

  19. Spread as a noun (finance):

    The difference between the prices of two similar items.

  20. Spread as a noun (geometry):

    An unlimited expanse of discontinuous points.

  21. Spread as a noun:

    The surface in proportion to the depth of a cut gemstone.

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