forspent

American

[fawr-spent] / fɔrˈspɛnt /

Also forespent

adjective

Archaic.

worn-out; exhausted.

forspent British

/ fɔːˈspɛnt /

adjective

archaic tired out; exhausted

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of forspent

First recorded in 1550–70; past participle of Middle English forspenden, Old English forspendan; see for-, spend

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.

Thus, Sidney Lanier: Into the woods my Blaster went, clean forspent, forspent; Into the woods my Master went, forspent with love and shame.

From Time Magazine Archive

Into the woods my Master went, Clean forspent, forspent; Into the woods my Master came, Forspent with love and shame.

From Sermons on Biblical Characters by Chappell, Clovis G.

We saw her, forspent, crawl into the thicket to sleep.

From The Wagnerian Romances by Brownell, Gertrude Hall

Her face was pale, and she had the appearance of one who is utterly forspent.

From Gabriel Tolliver A Story of Reconstruction by Harris, Joel Chandler

So taste of the anguish that knows no relent And be with the rest of the wolven forspent!

From The Book of the Thousand Nights and One Night, Volume III by Payne, John

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023