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• spender
  spender

  noun

  a person who spends, especially one who habitually spends excessively or lavishly; spendthrift.
• Spender
  Spender

  noun

  Stephen, 1909–96, English poet and critic.

spender

¹ American  

[spen-der] / ˈspɛn dər /

noun

spenders plural

1. a person who spends, especially one who habitually spends excessively or lavishly; spendthrift.

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Spender ² American  

[spen-der] / ˈspɛn dər /

noun

1. Stephen, 1909–96, English poet and critic.

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Spender ¹ British  

/ ˈspɛndə /

noun

1. Sir Stephen. 1909–95, English poet and critic, who played an important part in the left-wing literary movement of the 1930s. His works include Journals 1939–83 (1985) and Collected Poems (1985)

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spender ² British  

/ ˈspɛndə /

noun

1. a person who spends money in a manner specified

   a big spender

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• spenders
  plural

Etymology

Origin of spender

Middle English word dating back to 1350–1400; see origin at spend, -er ¹

Example Sentences

Bloomfield has been a big spender in recent school board election cycles.

From Los Angeles Times • May 29, 2026

Estonia in 2025 was the fourth-highest spender on defense as a share of its GDP among the alliance’s 32 allies, behind its close neighbors Poland, Lithuania and Latvia.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 28, 2026

The billions in funding will go to the most populated country on NATO's eastern flank, and the alliance's largest spender in relative terms, allocating 4.8 percent of its GDP to defence.

From Barron's • May 8, 2026

There, the court reasoned that such independent spending could not corrupt, because to count as independent spending, a spender could not coordinate with the candidate on campaign messaging.

From Slate • Jan. 28, 2026

Burr’s reputation as a notorious womanizer or as a lavish spender who always managed to stay one step ahead of his creditors did not trouble Hamilton.

From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis