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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

See Examples For:

spender Spender spenders

A spontaneous jaunt like that is probably something he wouldn’t have done years ago, but “after a lifetime of being a conscientious spender and saver, it felt deserved,” he said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 8, 2026

Concerns about ChatGPT-developer OpenAI’s ability to meet its roughly $1 trillion spending commitments have been part of the reason for the recent AI gloom but it’s hardly the only big spender in town.

From Barron's ● Feb. 5, 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

If the deal goes through, Paramount said that it would become Hollywood’s biggest spender — shelling out about $30 billion a year on programming.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 27, 2026

Enough to cover the cost of the drinks plus tip—not too much, but enough to look like a big spender.

From "X: A Novel" by Ilyasah Shabazz

I then set out to read everything else I could find by Spender and his queer cohort, including novelist Christopher Isherwood and poet W.H.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 6, 2024

He was married four times and is survived by his wife Lizzie Spender and four children.

From BBC ● Dec. 14, 2023

He is survived by his wife, the actress Lizzie Spender, and his four children.

From Reuters ● Apr. 22, 2023

If Harris is the best first-year player in the league, he’s not far ahead of teammate Spender Strider.

From Seattle Times ● Sep. 29, 2022

At the hilltop, behind two rocks, Spender lay, grinning with exhaustion from the thin atmosphere, great islands of sweat under each arm.

From "The Martian Chronicles" by Ray Bradbury

Dodgers, baseball’s biggest spenders, have the best record.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026

A growing sense of fatigue with the artificial intelligence trade and the related arms race is prompting one strategist to advise that investors stick with the so-called picks and shovels rather than the spenders.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 10, 2026

“For the AI spenders, what they’re trying to do is spend the money first, hoping that they will make the money back later if they’re successful in AI, but that’s not a given.”

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 2, 2026

This time, the bust could start with overinvestment in AI infrastructure from tech-company spenders.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 30, 2026

All sorts of ridiculous suggestions were made, and the boys offered jumping-jacks and comical toys to the two spenders.

From Two Little Women by Wells, Carolyn