spend

verb

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\ ˈspend

spent\ ˈspent

\; spending

Definition of spend

transitive verb

1 : to use up or pay out : expend

2a : 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, sacrifice

intransitive verb

1 : to expend or waste wealth or strength

2 : to become expended or consumed

3 : to have an orgasm

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Examples of spend in a Sentence

I spent $30 on his birthday gift. They spend a lot on clothes and cars. I want to buy a new car, but I don't have much money to spend. Her willingness to spend freely made her popular among her friends. He spends lavishly on vacations. I spent my summer at the beach. She spent eight months living in New York City. Relaxing with friends is a great way to spend a weekend. Our cat spends most of his time sleeping. Too much of my time is spent arguing with customers.

Recent Examples on the Web Evers wants to spend $15 million over the next two years to begin overhauling the 1970s-era computer system that administers unemployment benefits. — Patrick Marley, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 3 June 2021 State lawmakers are also moving to assume control over how to spend nearly $5.3 billion in federal COVID stimulus money — a largely flexible lump of cash that can be used in the coming years. — BostonGlobe.com, 3 June 2021 Senate Republicans unveiled a plan last week to spend $928 billion over eight years to update roads, bridges, rail and transit systems. — Richard Rubin, WSJ, 3 June 2021 In all, 25 million people — coming to the county for the day or overnight — are forecast to spend $7.6 billion on hotels, restaurants, shopping and attractions this year. — San Diego Union-Tribune, 3 June 2021 Trisha Thadani reports on how the mayor wants to spend this money. — Taylor Kate Brown, San Francisco Chronicle, 2 June 2021 Meanwhile, Breed on Tuesday introduced a budget proposal for the next two years that aims to spend $1 billion on addressing homelessness in San Francisco. — Danielle Wallace, Fox News, 2 June 2021 The draft shows that NOACA wants to spend roughly $13.4 billion in federal, state, and local revenues over 30 years to maintain road networks and improve transit systems while expanding options for bicyclists and improving safety for pedestrians. — Steven Litt, cleveland, 2 June 2021 Intel, the American chip-maker, has outlined plans to spend $20 billion to erect new plants in Arizona. — New York Times, 1 June 2021

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'spend.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Last Updated

5 Jun 2021

Cite this Entry

“Spend.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/spend. Accessed 15 Jun. 2021.

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More Definitions for spend

spend

verb

English Language Learners Definition of spend

: to use (money) to pay for something

: to allow (time) to pass in a particular place or while doing a particular activity

: to use (energy or effort) to do something

See the full definition for spend in the English Language Learners Dictionary

spend

verb

\ ˈspend

spent\ ˈspent \; spending

Kids Definition of spend

1 : to use (money) to pay for something

2 : to cause or allow (as time) to pass … he parked his car … and was spending considerable time walking about town.— Robert McCloskey, Homer Price

3 : to use wastefully : squander She spends a lot of energy worrying.