splurge

American  

[splurj] / splɜrdʒ /

verb (used without object)

• splurges,
  present (3rd person singular)
• splurged,
  past participle,  past
• splurging
  present participle

1. to indulge oneself in some luxury or pleasure, especially a costly one.

   They splurged on a trip to Europe.

2. to show off.

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verb (used with object)

• splurges,
  present (3rd person singular)
• splurged,
  past participle,  past
• splurging
  present participle

1. to spend (money) lavishly or ostentatiously.

   He splurged thousands on the party.

noun

• splurges
  plural

1. an ostentatious display, especially an extravagantly expensive one.

   Synonyms:

   spree, indulgence

splurge British  

/ splɜːdʒ /

noun

1. an ostentatious display, esp of wealth

2. a bout of unrestrained extravagance

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verb

1. (often foll by on) to spend (money) unrestrainedly or extravagantly

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• splurgy
  adjective
• splurgily
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• splurges
  plural

Participles

• splurging
  present
• splurged
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• splurge
  simple
• splurges
  simple
• have splurged
  perfect
• has splurged
  perfect
• am splurging
  progressive
• are splurging
  progressive
• is splurging
  progressive
• have been splurging
  perfect progressive
• has been splurging
  perfect progressive

Past

• splurged
  simple
• had splurged
  perfect
• was splurging
  progressive
• were splurging
  progressive
• had been splurging
  perfect progressive

Future

• will splurge
  simple
• will have splurged
  perfect
• will be splurging
  progressive
• will have been splurging
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of splurge

1820–30, perhaps blend of splash and surge

Explanation

To splurge is to indulge yourself. You can also go on a splurge if you spend a lot or act extravagantly in another way. Anyone might have a cupcake. If you have 10 cupcakes, that's a splurge. When you go on a splurge or are splurging, it usually applies to money. Splurging happens when you see a lot of things you want — or even one very expensive thing — and buy it, even though you might not be able to afford it. When you splurge, you're going wild in some way. A splurge is sometimes called a binge.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

splurge splurges splurged splurging

Students will visit Halsey’s South L.A. sculpture garden, “sister dreamer, lauren halsey’s architectural ode to tha surge n splurge of south central los angeles,” to explore themes of neighborhood, memory and belonging.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 29, 2026

Ellsworth’s first splurge was a roughly $1 million family vacation to Europe.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 15, 2026

The Times reports that the government will conduct a "borrowing splurge in bid to boost economy".

From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026

After an initial splurge on travel and entertainment, retirees are often lulled into a sense of complacency because their spending tends to decrease during the first decade after leaving the workforce.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 29, 2026

“He said she was always impulsive like that, and she always loved movies. She grew up watching everything in black and white, because their mother refused to splurge on a color TV.”

From "I Can Make This Promise" by Christine Day

A lack of updating, rising mall rents and splurges on new businesses weakened its business until it declared bankruptcy in 2014.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 22, 2026

Are you one of those travelers who splurges on premium cabins?

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 10, 2026

Marcel Thieliant at Capital Economics added that he did not expect Takaichi to embark on any new major spending splurges or tax cuts.

From Barron's ● Feb. 9, 2026

You can also put some more effort into bargain hunting when it comes to splurges like those soccer jerseys you mentioned.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 31, 2025

Hence it is that most histories are mere registers of names and dates, dull or highly-colored hackneyed splurges of print giving no insight into actual conditions.

From Great Fortunes from Railroads by Gustavus Myers

Taking advantage of the strong dollar, they’ve splurged at high-end shops.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026

Knocking on for £40m - maybe more - has been splurged on transfer and loan fees.

From BBC ● Mar. 8, 2026

The Dodgers also splurged in December by signing former New York Mets pitcher Edwin Diaz to a $69 million three-year deal, making him the highest paid closer in baseball.

From Barron's ● Jan. 23, 2026

So, when the Dodgers splurged last winter, Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner offered a measured response.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 21, 2026

I think Dad was just too cheap to afford a divorce, so he splurged on a fancy hotel, someplace that probably has terry-cloth robes and heart-shaped good-night chocolates.

From "Better Nate Than Ever" by Tim Federle

In Scottish terms, Rangers' American owners have spent colossal money, splurging tens of millions on the creation of a team, and an environment, that can win a league and do something in Europe.

From BBC ● Jul. 31, 2026

It’s also unclear why she chose a five-star resort for the splurging, given her discomfort with everything from the menu on down.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 14, 2026

But after splurging on wardrobe items belonging to bygone A-listers, some auction buyers wonder what to do with them.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 26, 2026

Sure, some attendees may be splurging thousands on a single ticket, but others are getting nothing at all, even after traveling across international borders for games.

From Slate ● Jun. 24, 2026

The difference is that one will be splurging and then play on a public course while the other will not blink at the price and tee off at a private country club.

From "Class Matters" by The New York Times