1
as in to pay
to hand over or use up in payment
I always end up spending too much money at the mall
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to consume
to make complete use of
the town has already spent its budget for snow removal, and it's only January
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to waste
to use up carelessly
spent all his energy on impractical schemes
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of spend
McVay’s greatest strength The book on the Rams coach has also been written many times, with the most obvious angle being that every offensive coach who spends time around him seems to get a bigger job in this league.
—
Nate Atkins, New York Times, 1 Oct. 2025
Opponents said Antoni — who has spent most of his career at right-wing think tanks — lacked the expertise in statistical number crunching that's typical of previous BLS commissioners.
—Scott Horsley, NPR, 1 Oct. 2025
This saved the state from spending big on private consultants.
—Joan Meiners, AZCentral.com, 1 Oct. 2025
Perry’s most recent film out of the partnership, Madea’s Destination Wedding, spent four weeks on the Global Top 10 Movies (English) List.
—Matt Grobar, Deadline, 1 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for spend
Nate Atkins, New York Times, 1 Oct. 2025
Opponents said Antoni — who has spent most of his career at right-wing think tanks — lacked the expertise in statistical number crunching that's typical of previous BLS commissioners.
—Scott Horsley, NPR, 1 Oct. 2025
This saved the state from spending big on private consultants.
—Joan Meiners, AZCentral.com, 1 Oct. 2025
Perry’s most recent film out of the partnership, Madea’s Destination Wedding, spent four weeks on the Global Top 10 Movies (English) List.
—Matt Grobar, Deadline, 1 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for spend
Recent Examples of Synonyms for spend
Verb
-
The state made a similar deal with the white owners of a nearby daycare that had to close due to flooding -- but ALDOT paid those property owners $165,000 for a portion of their property.—
Maia Rosenfeld,
ABC News,
1 Oct. 2025
-
Typically, financial advisors are paid via commission, fees or a hybrid of the two.—
Kate Dore, CFP®, EA,Kelli Grant, CFP®,
CNBC,
1 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Fans are already consuming an increasing number of clips captured on other viewers’ phones, offering unique angles of game-changing plays or gnarly injuries mixed with the fan reactions that make those moments so compelling.—
Jacob Feldman,
Sportico.com,
26 Sep. 2025
-
An Oktoberfest board includes a sausage, two soft pretzels, cheese sauce, German mustard, sauerkraut and radi, or German radish that is typically consumed with beer.—
Marcus Smith,
Sacbee.com,
26 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Denim has long been branded one of the most climate-adverse, chemical-heavy, water-wasting fabrics to mill and manufacture.—
Kate Nishimura,
Sourcing Journal,
30 Sep. 2025
-
The Lynx held their season-ending media access on Tuesday, and Napheesa Collier wasted little time in getting things off her chest.—
John Shipley,
Twin Cities,
30 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
How does a century-old industrial company such as Firmenich (renamed DSM-Firmenich following its 2023 merger with Dutch chemical firm DSM) manage to remain globally competitive today, given that a large share of its cost base is in the most expensive country in the world?—
Peter Vanham,
Fortune,
2 Oct. 2025
-
The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act requires employers to give 60 days’ notice ahead of mass layoffs.—
Andrew Stanton,
MSNBC Newsweek,
1 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Gladys is actually an ailing witch who cast a spell in order to drain them of their life force and reinvigorate herself in the process.—
Brian Davids,
HollywoodReporter,
25 Sep. 2025
-
The announcement signals a significant push to further expand charter schools in South Florida, a move critics warn could drain resources from traditional public schools already grappling with declining enrollment.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
25 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Indonesian gymnastics has lost one of the nation's finest sons.—
Victoria Beaule,
ABC News,
26 Sep. 2025
-
If a player is left in a room, they will be stuck there, losing a point each round, until another player returns to the room to release them.—
Kayti Burt,
Time,
26 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Once those reserves are exhausted, China may be tempted to broker a deal to buy American soybeans, but those hopes may wither when the Southern Hemisphere's harvest season begins early next year.—
Marissa Meador,
IndyStar,
26 Sep. 2025
-
Each one of those alerts puts millions of lives on hold – part of Russia’s strategy of terrorizing and exhausting Ukraine’s civilian population.—
Daria Tarasova-Markina,
CNN Money,
25 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Michelle Gonzalez, the organization’s president and chief executive, noted that the system is not ready to absorb the care of so many additional residents without medical coverage.—
Paul Sisson,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
26 Sep. 2025
-
This gives the dry ingredients time to absorb the wet ingredients, which will yield waffles with better structure.—
Robin Miller,
AZCentral.com,
25 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Spend.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/spend. Accessed 2 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share