Synonyms of spending

spending

verb

present participle of spend

1

as in paying

to hand over or use up in payment

I always end up spending too much money at the mall

Synonyms & Similar Words

• paying
• giving
• expending
• disbursing
• wasting
• laying out
• outlaying
• dropping
• shelling out
• forking (over, out, or up)
• lavishing
• raining
• squandering
• dissipating
• blowing
• running through
• throwing away
• frittering (away)

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• saving
• making
• earning
• hoarding
• acquiring
• securing
• realizing
• procuring
• winning
• gaining
• laying up
• caching
• garnering

2

as in consuming

to make complete use of

the town has already spent its budget for snow removal, and it's only January

Synonyms & Similar Words

• consuming
• draining
• exhausting
• reducing
• absorbing
• burning
• eating
• using
• depleting
• expending
• wasting
• devouring
• decreasing
• emptying
• playing out
• drawing down
• running out of
• using up
• lowering
• diminishing
• weakening
• downsizing
• dwindling
• undermining
• bankrupting
• crippling
• impoverishing
• lessening
• sapping
• cleaning (out)
• blowing
• squandering
• debilitating
• misspending
• disabling
• abating
• lavishing
• enfeebling
• guzzling
• drying up
• dissipating
• de-escalating
• throwing away
• running through
• frittering (away)

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• increasing
• replacing
• renewing
• enforcing
• enlarging
• reinforcing
• strengthening
• augmenting
• repairing
• restoring
• rebuilding
• saving
• preserving
• reviving
• conserving
• bolstering
• fortifying

3

as in wasting

to use up carelessly

spent all his energy on impractical schemes

Synonyms & Similar Words

• wasting
• losing
• squandering
• lavishing
• blowing
• misspending
• consuming
• dissipating
• running through
• throwing away
• trifling (away)
• overspending
• frittering (away)
• splurging
• indulging
• fiddling away
• playing ducks and drakes with
• depleting
• exhausting
• expending
• impoverishing
• disbursing
• shooting
• overindulging
• laying out

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• conserving
• protecting
• saving
• economizing
• preserving
• skimping
• scrimping
• hoarding
• laying up

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of spending

After arriving at the hospital and spending nearly an hour with hospital staff filling out paperwork, I was handed another form accepting financial responsibility. — Scott Levenson, New York Daily News, 18 Oct. 2026

Teams are tight-knit, spending practically every moment together from Spring Training through October in what can be described as a 162-game marathon. — Don Riddell, CNN Money, 18 Oct. 2026

How successful will the job interview go after spending the day in the Florida sun? — Chris Ham, The Orlando Sentinel, 18 Oct. 2026

Selig in essence dumped his team’s AL tradition for a few more home games with the Cubs and their money-spending fans from the North Shore. — Paul Sullivan, Chicago Tribune, 18 Oct. 2026

Tesla is spending billions developing cars that drive themselves, yet its most exciting new vehicle is designed for people who actually love being behind the wheel. — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 18 Oct. 2026

Since then, she's applied for dozens of positions, spending hours on each one, tailoring her resume to the specific job requirements. — Scott Horsley, NPR, 11 Oct. 2026

United Democracy Project, a super PAC affiliated with AIPAC, disclosed an initial $94,000 expenditure against El-Sayed on Friday, after spending nearly $30 million to oppose him in the Democratic primary. — ABC News, 11 Oct. 2026

United Democracy Project, a super PAC affiliated with the pro-Israel group AIPAC, disclosed an initial $94,000 expenditure against El-Sayed on Friday, after spending nearly $30 million to oppose him in the Democratic primary. — Joey Cappelletti, Los Angeles Times, 11 Oct. 2026