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spadeful

[ speyd-fool ]

/ ˈspeɪd fʊl /

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noun, plural spade·fuls.

the amount that can be dug out with or carried on a spade.

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Which of the following nouns has an irregular plural form?

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Origin of spadeful

First recorded in 1635–45; spade¹ + -ful

Words nearby spadeful

SPAD, spade, spadefish, spadefoot, spadefoot toad, spadeful, spade guinea, spadework, spadger, spadiceous, spadille

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use spadeful in a sentence

After dinner we dug a small hole in the floor of the outer tent, in which we placed a spadeful of red-hot embers from the fire.
Three in Norway|James Arthur Lees
There would be no getting used to it, every moment, every hour, that passed would but put another spadeful of earth on his coffin.
The Angel of Pain|E. F. Benson
Yesterday a spadeful of diamonds dumped upon a velvet cloth was only a spadeful of diamonds to him, and it was nothing more.
What Will People Say?|Rupert Hughes
"I can see roses in that, miss," said the gardener, turning up a deep spadeful for her inspection.
The Incendiary|W. A. (William Augustine) Leahy

I cant budge a spadeful of this hard ground, Betty, complained Ruth, as her companion joined her.
Girl Scouts at Dandelion Camp|Lillian Elizabeth Roy