spread over
spread over — idiom
1. to schedule payments, costs, work, or events at regular points across several da
to schedule payments, costs, work, or events at regular points across several days, weeks, or months, so that they happen gradually rather than all at once
The tax office allowed Hamza to spread the payment over six monthly installments.
active: spread + object + over + time period
Charlotte's medical expenses were spread over several months by the insurance company.
passive: be spread over + time period
The university allows students to spread their course fees over the whole academic year.
Marco and his team spread the renovation work over the summer to avoid disruption.
The training sessions were spread over three weeks so new staff could learn comfortably.
- stagger
more informal; suggests intentional gaps between events
- phase
implies careful planning with clear stages
- distribute
broader meaning; covers time or physical space
- space out
informal; suggests putting things at regular intervals
- concentrate
to bring all parts into a single point in time
- lump together
informal; to combine into a single payment or event
文法句型
spread + object + over + time period
be spread over + time period
用法筆記
Often used in the passive voice (be spread over). The subject is typically a cost, payment schedule, workload, or series of events — not a physical object.