Meaning & use
spread too thin
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Meanings
phrasefixed phrase
Having too many things to do or handle at once, so that you cannot give enough attention to any of them.
Grammar: Used after be, get, or become, and often followed by with: 'spread too thin with work.'
Patterns
- be spread too thin
- get spread too thin
- spread too thin with something
After taking on three new projects, the team was spread too thin to meet the deadline.
She felt spread too thin between her job, her studies, and caring for her parents.
The charity became spread too thin, trying to help in too many countries at once.
phrasefixed phrase
Having too little of something, such as money or resources, to cover all the needs or demands.
Grammar: Often used with money, resources, or staff: 'The budget is spread too thin.'
Patterns
- spread too thin across something
- spread too thin to do something
The school's budget was spread too thin to buy new computers for every classroom.
With only two nurses on the night shift, the staff were spread too thin to give proper care.
Common combinations
- spread too thin with work
- He's been spread too thin with work lately and looks exhausted.
- spread too thin across too many projects
- The manager warned that we were spread too thin across too many projects.
- become spread too thin
- The company became spread too thin after opening offices in five new cities.
- feel spread too thin
- I feel spread too thin trying to please everyone.
Synonyms and how they differ
- overstretched
- Similar meaning, but often used for organizations or systems that have taken on more than they can manage; 'spread too thin' is more informal and focuses on the lack of attention.
- overcommitted
- Focuses on having promised to do too many things; 'spread too thin' emphasizes the resulting inability to do them well.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: spread too thin or spread thin?
spread too thin vs spread thin
Without 'too', 'spread thin' can simply mean spread in a thin layer, as with butter. The phrase 'spread too thin' always implies an excessive amount that causes problems.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'spread too thin' correctly?
Choose one answer.
Option C correctly uses 'spread too thin' to mean having too many commitments to handle them properly. Option A uses 'spread too thin' for a physical layer, which is not the idiomatic meaning; option B has incorrect word order; option D uses 'spread' in the sense of news traveling, which does not fit the idiom.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “spread too thin”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.