spud

[spuhd]

noun

1. Informal.,  a potato.

2. a spadelike instrument, especially one with a narrow blade, as for digging up or cutting the roots of weeds.

3. a chisel-like tool for removing bark.

4. a pointed leg or stake for staying or supporting dredging or earth-boring machinery.

5. a short pipe, as for connecting a water pipe with a meter.

6. Surgery.,  an instrument having a dull flattened blade for removing substances or foreign bodies from certain parts of the body, as wax from the ear.

verb (used with object)

spudded, spudding 

1. to remove with a spud.

verb phrase

1. spud in,  to set up earth-boring equipment, especially for drilling an oil well.

spud

/ spʌd /

noun

1. an informal word for potato

2. a narrow-bladed spade for cutting roots, digging up weeds, etc

3. Also called: spudder. a tool, resembling a chisel, for removing bark from trees

verb

1. (tr) to remove (bark) or eradicate (weeds) with a spud

2. (intr) to drill the first foot of an oil-well

Word History and Origins

Origin of spud¹

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English spudde “short knife”; further origin unknown

Word History and Origins

Origin of spud¹

C15 spudde short knife, of unknown origin; applied later to a digging tool, and hence to a potato

Example Sentences

It is already the world's second biggest spud producer.

From BBC

She says they had to make do with ham, pickled onions and "a few spuds that my daughter had left over mashed up with frozen broccoli and cauliflower".

From BBC

Tracy Bush, co-director of Provenance Potatoes in Kent, says poor weather has had a lot to do with the price of spuds going up in recent years.

From BBC

Cedric Porter, a potato market expert, said the rise in spud prices had been "dramatic".

From BBC

Cantwell is right to defend the spud against this line of attack.

From Seattle Times