dispenses

verb

present tense third-person singular of dispense
as in distributes
to give out (something) to appropriate individuals a conscientious pharmacist never dispenses pills to people without assurances that they understand the instructions

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

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 dispenses The foundation dispenses $350,000 to $500,000 a year, according to the family's attorney, Stephanie Johnson O’Day. — Daniel De Visé, USA Today, 28 June 2026 According to a news release, Sibley entered into a collaborative agreement with pharmacist Josh Harrison at The Compounding Lab, which dispenses drugs for people and animals. — ABC News, 17 June 2026 Like a vending machine that dispenses Hot Wheels instead of Coca-Cola. — Olivia Wakim, AJC.com, 16 June 2026 In the middle, a Cartman in the role of a Midtown tax adviser dispenses accounting tips and tricks, culled from a YouTube account run by a real-life New York CPA. — Theo Belci, Artforum, 2 June 2026 This Oxo dish brush features a handle that dispenses soap at the push of a button. — Bestreviews, Chicago Tribune, 6 May 2026 That unit dispenses prescriptions in CVS’ more than 9,000 retail pharmacies and provides other services, such as vaccinations and diagnostic testing. — Annika Kim Constantino, CNBC, 6 May 2026 The musical, featuring a book by David Hornsby and Chris Hoch and a score by the Rescues that dispenses with the movie’s cover-heavy soundtrack, is undeniably overstuffed. — Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 1 May 2026 Sol de Janeiro’s body lotion comes with a convenient pump that quickly dispenses the lotion so my skin can reap the benefits of the formula. — Rylee Johnston, PEOPLE, 1 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dispenses
  1. distributes
  2. provides
  3. administers
  4. allocates
Verb
  • The White House on Friday confirmed the executive action against members of the Election Assistance Commission, which distributes federal grants to states, oversees the testing of voting systems and maintains the national voter registration forms.
    — Bill Barrow, Los Angeles Times, 10 July 2026
  • Unlike most self-assembling robotic systems, which depend on a central controller to coordinate every movement, FloatForm distributes intelligence across the swarm.
    — Jijo Malayil, Interesting Engineering, 10 July 2026
Definition of distributes
Verb
  • The ceremony begins with intention setting that provides a context for the physical treatment that will follow.
    — Robb Report Studio, Robb Report, 16 July 2026
  • That economic mobility is also why WeBuild is focused on homeownership and provides financial literacy classes.
    — Desiree Mathurin, Charlotte Observer, 15 July 2026
Definition of provides
Verb
  • The California Department of Social Services, the agency that administers the CalFresh dollars, said in June that about 665,000 state residents are in jeopardy of losing their benefits due to new work requirements.
    — Lizzie Kane July 11, Sacbee.com, 11 July 2026
  • Mubadala Capital currently manages, advises, and administers more than $600 billion in assets and has offices in Abu Dhabi, New York, London, San Francisco, and Rio de Janeiro.
    — Melissa Hancock, Fortune, 7 July 2026
Definition of administers
Verb
  • Lucas said each year the City Council allocates more than 25% of its annual operating revenue to fund the Police Department, yet the agency struggles each year with paying legal settlements.
    — Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 14 July 2026
  • For example, the bill creates incentives to accelerate housing supply development, revitalize vacant commercial properties into residences, and even allocates funds towards innovations that further create more housing supply.
    — Jamie Gold, Forbes.com, 30 June 2026
Definition of allocates

Browse Nearby Words

dispensed
dispenses
dispensing
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Dispenses.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dispenses. Accessed 18 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on dispenses

Nglish: Translation of dispenses for Spanish Speakers

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

The Words of the Week - Jul 17
See More

Popular

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
child-detective
Spot the Misspelled Word July 2026 Those little red underlines can't help you now...
See All