as in to spend
to hand over or use up in payment
we shelled out an obscene amount of money for those concert tickets
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Recent Examples of shell out
The Bengals crowned Boye Mafe as prince of the pass rush going forward, shelling out $20 million per year for his services.
—
Paul Dehner Jr, New York Times, 15 Apr. 2026
Some employers are even shelling out $6,500 to help some workers onto the property ladder.
—Jake Angelo, Fortune, 14 Apr. 2026
Meanwhile, Cassie is spending much of her time alone in their mansion and struggling to get Nate to shell out money for home renovations and their wedding — including $50,000 worth of flowers.
—Caroline Blair, PEOPLE, 13 Apr. 2026
However, the only highly visible campaign is that of billionaire Steyer, who’s not only hopping around the state for personal appearances but shelling out millions of his own bucks for television and internet ads.
—Dan Walters, Mercury News, 8 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for shell out
Paul Dehner Jr, New York Times, 15 Apr. 2026
Some employers are even shelling out $6,500 to help some workers onto the property ladder.
—Jake Angelo, Fortune, 14 Apr. 2026
Meanwhile, Cassie is spending much of her time alone in their mansion and struggling to get Nate to shell out money for home renovations and their wedding — including $50,000 worth of flowers.
—Caroline Blair, PEOPLE, 13 Apr. 2026
However, the only highly visible campaign is that of billionaire Steyer, who’s not only hopping around the state for personal appearances but shelling out millions of his own bucks for television and internet ads.
—Dan Walters, Mercury News, 8 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for shell out
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shell out
Verb
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In 2025, the department spent about thirty million dollars paying people not to work.—
Zach Helfand,
New Yorker,
20 Apr. 2026
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Los Angeles spent most of Sunday slowing the tempo and trying to drag a faster, better team into the mud with them.—
Sean Keeler,
Denver Post,
20 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
In 2025, the department spent about thirty million dollars paying people not to work.—
Zach Helfand,
New Yorker,
20 Apr. 2026
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In fact, many retailers find themselves in a similar quandary because tariff refunds will go to whoever paid the actual customs bill.—
Alina Selyukh,
NPR,
19 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Those warnings lay out the increasingly stark consequences of a war the United States and Israel embarked on, including in friendly or allied nations, which now face the prospect of economic chaos.—
Hanna Ziady,
CNN Money,
15 Apr. 2026
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Investigators lay out a detailed narrative of how the farmer’s wife was killed and provide an intimate look at a couple and family in the midst of a contentious divorce.—
James Rainey,
Los Angeles Times,
2 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Shell out.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shell%20out. Accessed 22 Apr. 2026.
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