dispense
Americanverb (used with object)
-
dispenses,
present (3rd person singular)
-
dispensed,
past participle, past
-
dispensing
present participle
-
to deal out; distribute.
to dispense wisdom.
-
to administer.
to dispense the law without bias.
-
Pharmacology. to make up and distribute (medicine), especially on prescription.
-
Roman Catholic Church. to grant dispensation.
verb (used without object)
-
dispenses,
present (3rd person singular)
-
dispensed,
past participle, past
-
dispensing
present participle
noun
verb phrase
verb
-
(tr) to give out or issue in portions
-
(tr) to prepare and distribute (medicine), esp on prescription
-
(tr) to administer (the law, etc)
-
to do away (with) or manage (without)
-
to grant a dispensation to (someone) from (some obligation of church law)
-
to exempt or excuse from a rule or obligation
Usage
Dispense with is sometimes wrongly used where dispose of is meant: this task can be disposed of (not dispensed with ) quickly and easily
Synonym Usage
See distribute.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
dispensesimple
-
dispensessimple
-
have dispensedperfect
-
has dispensedperfect
-
am dispensingprogressive
-
are dispensingprogressive
-
is dispensingprogressive
-
have been dispensingperfect progressive
-
has been dispensingperfect progressive
Past
-
dispensedsimple
-
had dispensedperfect
-
was dispensingprogressive
-
were dispensingprogressive
-
had been dispensingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of dispense
1275–1325; Middle English dispensen < Medieval Latin dispēnsāre to pardon, exempt, Latin: to pay out, distribute, equivalent to dis- dis- 1 + pēnsāre, frequentative of pendere to weigh
Explanation
To dispense means to give out or distribute something. A school nurse can dispense students' medication and we all can dispense advice. The word dispense comes from the Old French word dispenser, meaning "give out." You can dispense anything from hand sanitizer to dating advice. When dispense is paired with with it means "get rid of it" or "skip." If you dispense with traditional Thanksgiving dishes, you might instead celebrate with pizza, pancakes, tacos — anything but turkey and all the fixings.
Vocabulary lists containing dispense
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Many joined with volunteer organizations to prepare and dispense meals to first responders and recovery workers.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2026
One of the FDA’s concerns is that the agency doesn’t have any information about the containers that would be used by compounding pharmacies to dispense the medication.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 24, 2026
After leaving Westminster, Burnham similarly began to dispense with ties and jackets.
From BBC ● Jul. 19, 2026
In February, Monsanto proposed another multi-billion dollar class settlement to dispense with claims that Roundup causes cancer.
From Barron's ● Jun. 25, 2026
The next day commenced as before, getting up and dressing by rushlight; but this morning we were obliged to dispense with the ceremony of washing; the water in the pitchers was frozen.
From "Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Brontë
His title, “Enemy of the People,” dispenses with the indefinite article — a decision he chalked up to “Chekhovian impulses.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2026
This streamlined version—co-written with Leonard Mlodinow, a physicist and popular-science author—retains explanations of vital topics, such as the curvature of spacetime and Einstein’s theory of relativity, but dispenses with the drier sections.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 19, 2026
The NHS pays pharmacies a fixed price for each medicine it dispenses.
From BBC ● Apr. 30, 2026
She also conducts research for patients—from cancer treatment to skin care—and dispenses advice that other doctors might not; a patient recently texted to ask if the foundation makeup she was considering was “clean beauty.”
From Barron's ● Nov. 12, 2025
“Your friend dispenses good advice,” the old beggar chimed in.
From "The Kite Runner" by Khaled Hosseini
The rate at which available biosimilars are actually dispensed to patients over brand-name counterparts fell to 23% in 2025, down from about 40% in 2024.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 10, 2026
Outside Estella, where the path passed a fountain that dispensed wine.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 25, 2026
As the show’s host, Queen Latifah dispensed uplifting thoughts about American idealism throughout the evening but also got a slot of her own to do her classic “U.N.I.T.Y.” with help from a rambunctious drum line.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 5, 2026
Taylor also dispensed with tradition by not having any bridesmaids, while Travis similarly did not have groomsmen, her spokeswoman said.
From BBC ● Jul. 4, 2026
Lexie was the one who dispensed advice, whether it had been asked for or not.
From "Little Fires Everywhere" by Celeste Ng
In a five-star review, the Guardian's Lucy Mangan, external said Lawson "moves through Bake Off dispensing words of wisdom, generous praise and gentle criticism".
From BBC ● Sep. 23, 2026
By now, Russell was in the lead, having wasted little time dispensing with Gasly.
From BBC ● Sep. 6, 2026
It is all part of Wertheim’s goal of dispensing his vast fortune, which he puts at an estimated $5 billion to $7 billion.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026
Here she remade herself as a low-key singer-songwriter dispensing wise yet unflashy tunes about love, home and family — part of a gentle resetting of pop’s mood after the turmoil of the previous decade.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 30, 2026
He was no longer selling; he was dispensing favors.
From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
