as in spends
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 shells out
Google already shells out billions to Apple each year to be the default search engine on iPhones.
—
Samantha Subin, CNBC, 27 Jan. 2026
Samantha Subin, CNBC, 27 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shells out
Verb
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Orion crew spends first day in space NASA's Orion spacecraft is pictured from one of the cameras mounted on its solar array wings on April 7.—
Mark Osborne,
CBS News,
11 Apr. 2026
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BestReviews spends thousands of hours researching, analyzing and testing products to recommend the best picks for most consumers.—
BestReviews,
Mercury News,
10 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The list price starts at a little over 12,000 for 200 milligram dosage, but the amount someone actually pays varies greatly.—
Dana Taylor,
USA Today,
15 Apr. 2026
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The Pickford Award pays tribute to alumni whose achievements bring special distinction to the university and the industry.—
Patrick Hipes,
Deadline,
14 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Each necklace has a little pavé jump ring that attaches it to the chain and gives it a subtle sparkle.—
Jeaneen Russell,
PEOPLE,
21 Apr. 2026
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Styles checks every box in the type of player the Commanders covet — tough, versatile, athletic, smart — and gives them a young player to build around for years to come.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
20 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Shells out.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shells%20out. Accessed 23 Apr. 2026.
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