To spread apart with diverging sides. In PA applications large loudspeaker configurations are often set up with the boxes splayed so that each cabinet points to a different part of the arena. The purpose of splaying is to provide more coverage than the inherent capabilities of the cabinets in question. Plus it helps avoid having too many drivers covering the same area, which tends to cause significant problems with phase cancellation and lobing. Manufacturers often build speakers with a trapezoidal shape to make splaying easier without taking up any more space than necessary.