Main Entry:

spend

Pronunciation:

\ˈspend\

Function:

verb

Inflected Form(s):

spent \ˈspent\ ; spend·ing

Etymology:

Middle English, from Old English -spendan, from Medieval Latin expendere to disburse, use up, from Latin, to measure by weight, pay out — more at expend

Date:

13th century

transitive verb1: to use up or pay out : expend2 a: exhaust, wear out <the hurricane gradually spent itself> b: to consume wastefully : squander <the waters are not ours to spend — J. R. Ellis>3: to cause or permit to elapse : pass <spend the night>4: give up, sacrificeintransitive verb1: to expend or waste wealth or strength2: to become expended or consumed3: to have an orgasm

— spend·able \ˈspen-də-bəl\ adjective

— spend·er noun