popularize vs disperse

popularize and disperse both are verbs.

Word	Noun	Adjective	Verb	Adverb
popularize	No	No	Yes	No
disperse	No	No	Yes	No

As verbs, disperse is a hypernym of popularize; that is, disperse is a word with a broader meaning than popularize:

popularize: cater to popular taste to make popular and present to the general public; bring into general or common use
disperse: cause to become widely known

popularize (verb)	disperse (verb)
make understandable to the general public	cause to separate
cater to popular taste to make popular and present to the general public; bring into general or common use	cause to become widely known
	distribute loosely
	separate (light) into spectral rays
	move away from each other
	to cause to separate and go in different directions