Thinly spread (6)
I believe the answer is:
sparse
'thinly spread' is the definition.
(I've seen this in another clue)
This is the entire clue.
(Other definitions for sparse that I've seen before include "Far from lavish" , "Thinly-spread" , "Thin on the ground, scarce" , "Thinly distributed" , "Thinly populated" .)