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

Macron said France is expending diplomatic capital to ensure a return to calm and to allow for the Lebanese armed forces to assert themselves as Israel pounds Hezbollah positions. —Sylvie Corbet, Los Angeles Times, 9 Mar. 2026

Zelenskyy claimed Thursday that Middle Eastern nations expended over 800 such missiles in just three days — more than Ukraine has held in reserve throughout the entire four-year war. —Samya Kullab, Fortune, 7 Mar. 2026

Look at how much energy Green had to expend just to drag them across the finish line. —Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 6 Mar. 2026

Those factors make the drone ideal for swarming and overburdening aerial defenses, with each drone intercepted also representing a more valuable defense asset expended. —Dylan Butts, CNBC, 5 Mar. 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