spend

[ spend ]

/ spɛnd /

verb (used with object), spent, spend·ing.

to pay out, disburse, or expend; dispose of (money, wealth, resources, etc.): resisting the temptation to spend one's money.

to employ (labor, thought, words, time, etc.), as on some object or in some proceeding: Don't spend much time on it.

to pass (time) in a particular manner, place, etc.: We spent a few days in Baltimore.

to use up, consume, or exhaust: The storm had spent its fury.

to give (one's blood, life, etc.) for some cause.

verb (used without object), spent, spend·ing.

to spend money, energy, time, etc.

Obsolete. to be consumed or exhausted.

QUIZZES

TAKE THIS QUIZ TO SEE WHAT YOU KNOW ABOUT HIGH SCHOOL PUNCTUATION!

Commas mark divisions in sentences. Periods end declarative sentences. Apostrophes show possession. Easy, right? Well, punctuation can get pretty tricky—fast. Think you got what it takes to be a punctuation expert? Take our quiz to prove it!

Question 1 of 10

Which of the options below is the best punctuation for the sentence? It__s your turn to pick the movie __ but your sister gets to pick the board game we _ re going to play.

Its your turn to pick the movie but your sister gets to pick the board game we’re going to play.

It’s your turn to pick the movie but your sister gets to pick the board game were going to play.

It’s your turn to pick the movie, but your sister gets to pick the board game we’re going to play.

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Origin of spend

1125–75; Middle English spenden, continuing Old English -spendan (in āspendan, forspendan to spend entirely or utterly) < West Germanic < Latin expendere to pay out, expend; compare German spenden

SYNONYMS FOR spend

1 Spend, disburse, expend, squander refer to paying out money. Spend is the general word: We spend more for living expenses now. Disburse implies expending from a specific source or sum to meet specific obligations, or paying in definite allotments: The treasurer has authority to disburse funds. Expend is more formal, and implies spending for some definite and (usually) sensible or worthy object: to expend most of one's salary on necessities. Squander suggests lavish, wasteful, or foolish expenditure: to squander a legacy.

2 use, apply, devote.

ANTONYMS FOR spend

1 earn, keep.

OTHER WORDS FROM spend

an·ti·spend·ing, adjectiveun·der·spend, verb, un·der·spent, un·der·spend·ing.un·spend·ing, adjective

Words nearby spend

spemann, spence, spencer, spencer gulf, spencerian, spend, spendable, spender, spending money, spends, spendthrift

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

British Dictionary definitions for underspend (1 of 2)

underspend

/ (ˌʌndəˈspɛnd) /

verb -spends, -spending or -spent

to spend less than (one can afford or is allocated)

noun (ˈʌndəˌspɛnd)

the amount by which someone or something is underspent

British Dictionary definitions for underspend (2 of 2)

spend

/ (spɛnd) /

verb spends, spending or spent

to pay out (money, wealth, etc)

(tr) to concentrate (time, effort, thought, etc) upon an object, activity, etc

(tr) to pass (time) in a specific way, activity, place, etc

(tr) to use up completelythe hurricane spent its force

(tr) to give up (one's blood, life, etc) in a cause

(intr) obsolete to be used up or exhausted

spend a penny British informal to urinate

noun

an amount of money spent, esp regularly, or allocated to be spent

Derived forms of spend

spendable, adjective

Word Origin for spend

Old English spendan, from Latin expendere; influenced also by Old French despendre to spend, from Latin dispendere; see expend, dispense

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

Idioms and Phrases with underspend

spend

see pocket (spending) money.