spew

American  

[spyoo] / spyu /

Sometimes spue

verb (used without object)

1. to discharge the contents of the stomach through the mouth; vomit.

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verb (used with object)

1. to eject from the stomach through the mouth; vomit.

2. to cast forth, gush, or eject, as in disgust or anger.

   The angry sergeant spewed his charges at us.

noun

1. something that is spewed; vomit.

spew British  

/ spjuː /

verb

1. to eject (the contents of the stomach) involuntarily through the mouth; vomit

2. to spit (spittle, phlegm, etc) out of the mouth

3. (usually foll by out) to send or be sent out in a stream

   flames spewed out

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noun

1. something ejected from the mouth

Other Word Forms

• spewer noun
• unspewed adjective

Etymology

Origin of spew

First recorded before 900; Middle English spewen “to vomit, cast forth foul language,” Old English spīwan “to vomit”; cognate with German speien, Old Norse spȳja, Gothic speiwan, Latin spuere

Example Sentences

Fury and venom at Celtic's calamitous attempt at a Champions League bid and a transfer window has spewed and sparked like hot lava from sections of the support.

From BBC

Meanwhile, the 820-foot Virat began spewing heavy smoke from its engine room after being hit at a point farther east along the coast.

From The Wall Street Journal

There are underground fires burning in at least two landfills in Southern California — smoldering chemical reactions that are incinerating buried garbage, releasing toxic fumes and spewing liquid waste.

From Los Angeles Times

They spew light, energy and solar material into space, sometimes towards Earth, which is the case this week.

From BBC

At Chernobyl, the nuclear reactor actually exploded, spewing material from the reactor’s core straight into the atmosphere.

From Literature

Related Words

• belch
• cascade
• eject
• erupt
• gush
• heave
• scatter
• spit
• vomit