Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Sparse \Sparse\, a. [Compar. {Sparser}; superl. {Sparsest}.] [L.
   sparsus, p. p. of spargere to strew, scatter. Cf. {Asperse},
   {Disperse}.]
   1. Thinly scattered; set or planted here and there; not being
      dense or close together; as, a sparse population.
      --Carlyle.

   2. (Bot.) Placed irregularly and distantly; scattered; --
      applied to branches, leaves, peduncles, and the like.

Sparse \Sparse\, v. t. [L. sparsus, p. p. of spargere to
   scatter.]
   To scatter; to disperse. [Obs.] --Spenser.

Source : WordNet®

sparse
     adj : not dense; "a thin beard"; "trees were sparse" [syn: {thin}]

Source : Free On-Line Dictionary of Computing

sparse
     
        A sparse {matrix} (or {vector}, or {array}) is one in which
        most of the elements are zero.  If storage space is more
        important than access speed, it may be preferable to store a
        sparse matrix as a list of (index, value) pairs or use some
        kind of {hash} scheme or {associative memory}.
     
        (1995-01-16)