sparse
adjective /spɑːs/
/spɑːrs/
(comparative sparser, superlative sparsest)
- only present in small amounts or numbers and often spread over a large area
- the sparse population of the islands
- Vegetation becomes sparse higher up the mountains.
- The information available on the subject is sparse.
Oxford Collocations DictionarySparse is used with these nouns:- attendance
- population
- vegetation
- …
Word Originearly 18th cent. (used to describe writing in the sense ‘widely spaced’): from Latin sparsus, past participle of spargere ‘scatter’.