expend

verb

ex·​pend ik-ˈspend 

expended; expending; expends

transitive verb

1

: to pay out : spend

… the social services upon which public revenue is expended.

—J. A. Hobson

2

: to make use of for a specific purpose : utilize

projects on which they expended great energy

also : use up

expender noun

Synonyms of expend

• spend
• pay

Examples of expend in a Sentence

Are we willing to expend the time and resources required to solve the problem?

redecoration will have to wait, since we've just expended our last dollar in buying the house

Recent Examples on the Web

That cost difference matters because defenders can deploy one-way attack drones in large numbers, potentially forcing them to expend valuable missiles against comparatively inexpensive targets. — Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 25 Oct. 2026

What goes up … But by the midterm year of 1966, much of the energy from LBJ's landslide election in 1964 had been expended — and much more had been siphoned off by his escalation of the war in Vietnam. — Ron Elving, NPR, 24 Oct. 2026

Vast quantities of exquisite and expensive American munitions have been expended on wars, even as Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid absorb over 60 percent of federal revenue. — Niall Ferguson, Foreign Affairs, 20 Oct. 2026

Why expend so much money convincing an audience to trust what a studio is selling when a digital filmmaker has already established that trust with their millions of followers? — Borys Kit, HollywoodReporter, 9 Oct. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English expenden, exspenden, borrowed from Anglo-French & Latin; Anglo-French espendre, expendre, borrowed from Latin expendere "to weigh, pay out, disburse," from ex- ex- entry 1 + pendere "to weigh, have a weight of, pay (out), estimate, consider" — more at pendent entry 1

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for expend

• amend
• append
• ascend
• attend
• backend
• befriend
• boyfriend
• commend
• compend
• contend
• defend
• depend

Kids Definition

expend

verb

ex·​pend ik-ˈspend 

1

: to pay out : spend

expend state funds

2

: use up

expend energy