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

The Cubs have already moved Colin Rea, Ben Brown and Javier Assad into their rotation for extended stretches, expending almost all of their depth. —Patrick Mooney, New York Times, 17 June 2026

All three boosters were expended, so no sonic boom landings. —Richard Tribou, The Orlando Sentinel, 17 June 2026

Deadhead spent flowers to keep plants from expending energy on seed development. —Mary Marlowe Leverette, Southern Living, 16 June 2026

Or prosecutors could drop the matter altogether, given the age of the defendants, the costs and court resources that would have to be expended, and the fact that all four of the original defendants have served at least some time in prison. —Jason Meisner, Chicago Tribune, 15 June 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

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