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Synonyms

spill over

British  

verb

  1. (intr, adverb) to overflow or be forced out of an area, container, etc

"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

noun

  1. the act of spilling over

  2. the excess part of something

  3. economics any indirect effect of public expenditure

  4. astronomy the part of the noise associated with a radio telescope using a dish antenna caused by pick-up by a secondary antenna from directions that do not intercept the dish

"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

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.

Effects of the closure will spill over and affect the industry as a whole, since the airport acts as a layover hot spot for flights from North America to Asia.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 2, 2026

In Seelampuri, a low‑income Delhi neighbourhood home to one of India's largest informal e‑waste hubs, narrow alleys spill over with tangled cables and broken devices.

From Barron's • Feb. 18, 2026

Yet the anxiety of investors could ratchet up again and spill over into stocks and bonds if employment and inflation take a turn for the worse.

From MarketWatch • Feb. 8, 2026

He’s worried that the actions of the federal agents will spill over into anger at local cops enforcing local laws, leading to even more chaos.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 1, 2026

Balconies spill over with flowers, chatty men and women, and servants darting from one place to another.

From "The Belles" by Dhonielle Clayton

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

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.