wellspring
Americannoun
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the head or source of a spring, stream, river, etc.; fountainhead.
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a source or supply of anything, especially when considered inexhaustible.
a wellspring of affection.
noun
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the source of a spring or stream; fountainhead
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a source of continual or abundant supply
Etymology
Origin of wellspring
First recorded before 900; Middle English welle spring, Old English wyllspring(e); well 2, spring
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.
Murnau, a village in the Bavarian Alps about 45 miles from Munich, became Münter’s wellspring.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 10, 2026
Angela’s vivid mood swings are a wellspring of entertainment; Tommy associates her phone number with an orchestral ringtone that sounds like a horror movie jump scare.
From Salon • Nov. 16, 2025
The 18th-century cult of reason met its match in the 19th century’s devotion to feeling—including suffering—as the wellspring of life and truth.
From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 27, 2025
Eric Musselman knew well before he took the reins at USC that recruiting the Southland and its wellspring of hoops talent would be essential to his success with the Trojans.
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 30, 2025
Tears from a wellspring deep and dark streamed down my face.
From "The Book of Unknown Americans" by Cristina Henríquez
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.
