springe

American  

[sprinj] / sprɪndʒ /

noun

1. a snare for catching small game.

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verb (used with object)

springed, springing

1. to catch in a springe.

verb (used without object)

springed, springing

1. to set a springe or springes.

springe British  

/ sprɪndʒ /

noun

1. a snare set to catch small wild animals or birds and consisting of a loop attached to a bent twig or branch under tension

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verb

1. (intr) to set such a snare

2. (tr) to catch (small wild animals or birds) with such a snare

Etymology

Origin of springe

1200–50; Middle English, variant of sprenge a snare, literally, something that is made to spring, derivative of sprengen to make spring, Old English sprengan, causative of springan to spring

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

springe springed springing

The slighter the strain on the springe, the more delicately can its mechanism be set.

From The Art of Travel Shifts and Contrivances Available in Wild Countries by Galton, Francis, Sir

We hold our Saxon woodcock in the springe, But he begins to flutter.

From Queen Mary and Harold by Tennyson, Alfred Tennyson, Baron

Thus had Amilcare been sold by his own purchase, and thus Grifone griped in his own springe.

From Little Novels of Italy by Hewlett, Maurice Henry

This was a springe to catch the "wimmen folks, God bless them."

From Eugene Field, a Study in Heredity and Contradictions — Volume 2 by Thompson, Slason

The wily intriguer was for once caught in his own springe.

From Hansford: A Tale of Bacon's Rebellion by Tucker, St. George

Witness the beautiful description: "All to once the nor'easter springed out from the land, an' afore us could down-haul the mainsail, the sea wer feather-white an' skatting in over the bows."

From A Poor Man's House by Reynolds, Stephen Sydney

Although somewhat highly springed, the vehicle is so well arranged and padded, that the occupants are seldom hurt by striking against the sides with rough jolting, unless quite helpless.

From Surgical Experiences in South Africa, 1899-1900 Being Mainly a Clinical Study of the Nature and Effects of Injuries Produced by Bullets of Small Calibre by Makins, George Henry

You have springed your dottrel, I find, and what is the consequence?—why, that there will be hue and cry after you presently.

From Redgauntlet by Scott, Walter, Sir

It’s springed a leak, an’ the water’s got down my neck.”

From Children of the Mist by Phillpotts, Eden

They had wintered it and springed it, and clung to it through bright days and dark.

From Four Girls and a Compact by Donnell, Annie Hamilton

But the more unavailable your manager is, the less likely they will be looking for you — or springing a last-minute assignment on you.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 30, 2026

Recognising those challenges, efforts to support new music are springing up around the UK.

From BBC ● Jun. 25, 2026

The field is more crowded now, with Bowlero, Top Golf, and other eat-and-play concepts springing up in many of the same areas.

From Slate ● Jun. 25, 2026

Data centers—the facilities that house the equipment powering AI and computing systems—are springing up across the country to fuel AI demand.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 15, 2026

They were springing up all over South Africa because we were supposed to be learning about and embracing one another in this post-apartheid era.

From "Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood" by Trevor Noah