spoon
Americannoun
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a utensil for use in eating, stirring, measuring, ladling, etc., consisting of a small, shallow bowl with a handle.
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any of various implements, objects, or parts resembling or suggesting this.
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a spoonful.
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Also called spoon bait. Angling. a lure used in casting or trolling for fish, consisting of a bright spoon-shaped piece of metal or the like, swiveled above one or more fishhooks, and revolving as it is drawn through the water.
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Also called number three wood. Golf. a club with a wooden head whose face has a greater slope than the brassie or driver, for hitting long, high drives from the fairway.
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a curved piece projecting from the top of a torpedo tube to guide the torpedo horizontally and prevent it from striking the side of the ship from which it was fired.
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(inspoon theory ) a unit of energy that, once used, must be replenished before becoming available again.
verb (used with object)
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to eat with, take up, or transfer in or as in a spoon.
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to hollow out or shape like a spoon.
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Games.
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to push or shove (a ball) with a lifting motion instead of striking it soundly, as in croquet or golf.
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to hit (a ball) up in the air, as in cricket.
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Informal. to nestle in close contact with (another), as when both are lying on their sides with their knees drawn up, the back of one person tucked into the front of the other like the bowls of two spoons.
He moved over and spooned her, pressing himself gently against her warm back as she slept.
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Informal: Older Use. to show affection or love toward (someone) by kissing and caressing, especially in an openly sentimental manner.
verb (used without object)
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Informal. (of two people) to nestle in close contact with one another, as when both are lying on their sides with their knees drawn up, the back of one person tucked into the front of the other like the bowls of two spoons.
They spooned without shifting position the whole night through.
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Informal: Older Use. to show affection or love by kissing and caressing, especially in an openly sentimental manner.
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Games. to spoon a ball.
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Angling. to fish with a spoon.
idioms
noun
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a metal, wooden, or plastic utensil having a shallow concave part, usually elliptical in shape, attached to a handle, used in eating or serving food, stirring, etc
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Also called: spoonbait. an angling lure for spinning or trolling, consisting of a bright piece of metal which swivels on a trace to which are attached a hook or hooks
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golf a former name for a No. 3 wood
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informal a foolish or useless person
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another name for booby prize
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rowing a type of oar blade that is curved at the edges and tip to gain a firm grip on the water Compare spade 1
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to inherit wealth or social standing
verb
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(tr) to scoop up or transfer (food, liquid, etc) from one container to another with or as if with a spoon
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slang (intr) to kiss and cuddle
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to hollow out (a cavity or spoon-shaped bowl) (in something)
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sport to hit (a ball) with a weak lifting motion, as in golf, cricket, etc
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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spoonsimple
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spoonssimple
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have spoonedperfect
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has spoonedperfect
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am spooningprogressive
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are spooningprogressive
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is spooningprogressive
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have been spooningperfect progressive
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has been spooningperfect progressive
Past
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spoonedsimple
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had spoonedperfect
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was spooningprogressive
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were spooningprogressive
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had been spooningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of spoon
First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English spōn; cognate with Low German spon, German Span “chip,” Old Norse spōnn; akin to Greek sphḗn “wedge”
Explanation
If it's not a fork or a knife, it’s probably a spoon. The curviest utensil in the drawer, a spoon is good for scooping soup, ice cream, or anything else that might fall through the slats on a fork. The small bowl-like end of a spoon is ideal for scooping and holding small amounts of soft or liquid foods. You couldn't eat your soup with a fork, and it would be challenging to get pudding into your mouth without a spoon. You can use spoon as a verb, too: "I watched her spoon cereal into her mouth while she watched cartoons." It also means "to lie together cuddled like two spoons."
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.
See Examples For:
For more heat, add a spoon of chili crisp and finely chopped green chilis.
From Salon ● Jul. 19, 2026
It is best known for its unusually low melting point, which allows a gallium spoon to melt in a cup of hot tea.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 9, 2026
Emily Ostrowska started work as a strawberry huller when the tournament got underway on Monday, using a spoon to take off the green and leave as much of the strawberry behind as possible.
From BBC ● Jul. 5, 2026
She said she scared the bear away by screaming and banging a pot with a wooden spoon.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 17, 2026
A bowl and a spoon hover in front of him.
From "The Manifestor Prophecy" by Angie Thomas
Dip the freezer dates in the melted chocolate using two spoons.
From Salon ● Jul. 20, 2026
Armed with spoons, they test the samples in a rapid-fire process of slurping and spitting into metal sinks they call “spittoons.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 15, 2026
As the sun sank, neighbors began banging spoons on metal pots from inside their homes, the subtle but unmistakable clank of government protests.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 29, 2026
Ivorian schoolchildren crowd around masks, finely carved turtles, and ceremonial spoons once admired by visitors of Zurich's Rietberg Museum.
From Barron's ● Jan. 16, 2026
Macon glanced at Cat, then at the cup filled with taster spoons.
From "Caterpillar Summer" by Gillian McDunn
They stood and screamed as one as Auger-Aliassime spooned a backhand long to confirm Djokovic's victory.
From BBC ● Jul. 7, 2026
Serve piled onto tostadas, scooped up with tortilla chips or spooned over rice.
From Salon ● Jun. 9, 2026
It ended up spooned over chicken, rice and greens, the whole thing rich without ever touching cream.
From Salon ● Mar. 25, 2026
Whisked egg yolks and sugar get spooned on top, like a frothy, golden ambrosia.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 17, 2026
She spooned porridge into her mouth, found it to be bland, and scooped four heaping mounds of brown sugar into the gray mess.
From "Throne of Glass" by Sarah J. Maas
New England-style lobster rolls weren’t always so plentiful in Los Angeles, and Connie & Ted’s offered some of the best and most consistent, spooning lobster shipped fresh from Gloucester, Mass., onto fluffy, griddled rolls.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 23, 2026
Don’t start spooning up coleslaw because you think it’ll stop you from getting cancer.
From Slate ● Sep. 5, 2025
“Those fruity juices, plus olive oil and honey, yield a ruby syrup perfect for spooning over molten cheese,” Laperruque added.
From Salon ● May 23, 2025
It felt perfectly complete to reach back into the fridge, take out the strained yogurt and balance out the dish by spooning some on top.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 30, 2024
Paddy says nothing because Mrs. Clohessy is spooning porridge into mugs and jam jars and one bowl and telling us to eat up and go to school.
From "Angela's Ashes: A Memoir" by Frank McCourt
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.
