spill
1 Americanverb (used with object)
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spills,
present (3rd person singular)
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spilled,
past participle, past
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spilt,
past participle, past
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spilling
present participle
-
to cause or allow to run or fall from a container, especially accidentally or wastefully.
to spill a bag of marbles; to spill milk.
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to shed (blood), as in killing or wounding.
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to scatter.
to spill papers all over everything.
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Nautical.
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to let the wind out of (a sail).
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to lose (wind) from a sail.
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to cause to fall from a horse, vehicle, or the like.
His horse spilled him.
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Informal. to divulge, disclose, or tell.
Don't spill the secret.
verb (used without object)
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spills,
present (3rd person singular)
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spilled,
past participle, past
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spilt,
past participle, past
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spilling
present participle
noun
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a spilling, as of liquid.
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a quantity spilled.
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the mark made by something spilled.
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a spillway.
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Also called spill light. superfluous or useless light rays, as from theatrical or photographic lighting units.
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Theater. an area of a stage illuminated by spill light.
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a throw or fall from a horse, vehicle, or the like.
She broke her arm in a spill.
noun
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a splinter.
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a slender piece of wood or of twisted paper, for lighting candles, lamps, etc.
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a peg made of metal.
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a small pin for stopping a cask; spile.
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Mining. forepole.
verb
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to fall or cause to fall from or as from a container, esp unintentionally
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to disgorge (contents, occupants, etc) or (of contents, occupants, etc) to be disgorged
the car spilt its passengers onto the road
the crowd spilt out of the theatre
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to shed (blood)
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Also: spill the beans. informal to disclose something confidential
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nautical to let (wind) escape from a sail or (of the wind) to escape from a sail
noun
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informal a fall or tumble
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short for spillway
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a spilling of liquid, etc, or the amount spilt
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the declaring of several political jobs vacant when one higher up becomes so
the Prime Minister's resignation could mean a Cabinet spill
noun
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a splinter of wood or strip of twisted paper with which pipes, fires, etc, are lit
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a small peg or rod made of metal
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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spillsimple
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spillssimple
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have spilledperfect
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have spiltperfect
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has spilledperfect
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has spiltperfect
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am spillingprogressive
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are spillingprogressive
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is spillingprogressive
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have been spillingperfect progressive
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has been spillingperfect progressive
Past
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spilledsimple
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spiltsimple
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had spilledperfect
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had spiltperfect
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was spillingprogressive
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were spillingprogressive
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had been spillingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of spill1
First recorded before 950; 1920–25 spill 1 for def. 6; Middle English spillen “to kill, destroy, shed (blood),” Old English spillan “to kill”; cognate with Middle High German, Middle Dutch spillen; akin to spoil
Origin of spill2
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English spille, spil(e); of uncertain origin
Explanation
When liquids spill, they accidentally flow or dribble out of a container. You can also spill solid objects, like when you slip and spill the contents of your backpack all over the sidewalk. When you spill your hot chocolate, the spot it makes where it lands is a spill. The act of spilling it is a spill too: "Sorry about the spill, Grandma." You can take a spill yourself, like when you tumble to the ground from your bike. Spill also means "talk," especially in the context of "spill the beans" or "spill your guts," both basically meaning "tell the whole truth."
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:
A manager attributed the readings to a paint-thinner spill, but Dixon said she had also found high readings 400 yards away.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 23, 2026
Water UK said that "no sewage spill is ever acceptable", while Southern Water said it was committed to reducing storm overflows.
From BBC ● Sep. 20, 2026
The invisible labor can spill into strained marriages, chronic stress and the feeling of constantly treading water.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 14, 2026
These firms have been investing in riskier fixed-income assets, and losses cause by volatility in the interest-rate environment could spill over into the banking sector.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 11, 2026
My tears spill on to the top of his head.
From "Code Name Kingfisher" by Liz Kessler
"That's why we are tripling investment over the next five years to halve spills from storm overflows and upgrade the capacity of 1,700 wastewater treatment works," a spokesperson said.
From BBC ● Sep. 20, 2026
Global fund managers are being haunted by a new worry — the possibility that bond yields could shoot higher in a “disorderly” manner, stoking volatility that potentially spills over into stocks and the broader economy.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 15, 2026
I have loved this sport my entire life, and a version of it that spills into more of the week is, to me, simply more of a good thing.
From Salon ● Sep. 9, 2026
Like many other internet-fueled food crazes, Cane’s enthusiasm often spills offline in surprisingly tangible ways.
From Slate ● Aug. 24, 2026
It spills out of me quickly the whole story of what happened since they released me.
From "Born Behind Bars" by Padma Venkatraman
Last week, those concerns spilled into the mainstream after the dramatic quitting of Jacob Coxon, a former OpenAI researcher who had gone to Anthropic earlier this year.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026
The meltdown spilled over into the stock market, with the benchmark Borsa Istanbul 100 tumbling 5.5% on Wednesday and triggering a circuit breaker.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026
Social media spats between the fighters have brought plenty of heat, but Conor Benn does not compare it to the raw nature of the Eubank saga, which spilled over into face-to-face fury.
From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2026
The exhibition also spilled outside of the museum.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026
Aisles spilled over with every object a trainee would need.
From "The Marvellers" by Dhonielle Clayton
Sewage is spilt when it is raining to prevent the system becoming overwhelmed and backing up into people's homes.
From BBC ● Mar. 26, 2026
My motto in investing has always been cry over spilt milk, for analyzing errors is how you learn almost everything.
From Barron's ● Dec. 31, 2025
We had it in rugby where fake blood was spilt, so we want to avoid that.
From BBC ● May 22, 2025
In Sunday's victory over Scotland, Erasmus opted for a 7-1 spilt of forwards to backs on the bench.
From BBC ● Nov. 13, 2024
The tray shook as I held it; the water spilt from the glass; my heart struck my ribs loud and fast.
From "Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Brontë
But regardless, this sentiment is spilling into the real world, as a recent Gallup poll showed 71% of Americans opposed construction of the physical manifestation of AI: data centers.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 18, 2026
European spy chiefs worry that Russia's war against Ukraine is increasingly spilling over onto their soil, but Kyiv's Western allies are struggling to come up with countermeasures to halt Moscow's "hybrid" attacks.
From Barron's ● Sep. 3, 2026
When neutrophils encounter pathogens, they can release toxic substances and even destroy themselves, spilling long strands of biological material that form web-like traps around invading microbes.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 3, 2026
If, at 82 years old, he’s considering his legacy, he’s also still spilling out new ideas at a startling pace, sometimes in new ensembles—the one heard on last year’s “Listen Ship” included six guitarists.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026
The dry peanut butter had torn the flaky bread and the syrupy jam was spilling over.
From "Healer of the Water Monster" by Brian Young
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.
