1
as in pays
to hand over or use up in payment
I always end up spending too much money at the mall
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in consumes
to make complete use of
the town has already spent its budget for snow removal, and it's only January
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in loses
to use up carelessly
spent all his energy on impractical schemes
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of spends
In Italy, the couple only spends about $1,246 per month, including utilities and living expenses.
—
Celia Fernandez, CNBC, 27 Feb. 2026
BestReviews spends thousands of hours researching, analyzing and testing products to recommend the best picks for most consumers.
—Bestreviews, Chicago Tribune, 27 Feb. 2026
Even Harbour’s physicality — the actor has put on weight and spends much of the show in ill-fitting attire or partially disrobed — is meant to elicit more than one response.
—Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 27 Feb. 2026
For reference, Charlotte spends roughly $50 million on athletics, compared to Clemson’s $200 million.
—Hunter Bailey, Charlotte Observer, 27 Feb. 2026
Each tester spends at least a month on the new mattress—coming in over 2,500 hours with an eight-hour sleep schedule in mind for all of the picks in this story—taking notes and catching z’s.
—Kristi Kellogg, Architectural Digest, 27 Feb. 2026
If one company spends $300,000 proving its product supports sleep or immune function, every other brand using the same ingredient benefits for free.
—Elise Felicione, STAT, 26 Feb. 2026
Legal experts say lawsuits can sometimes be faster avenues for change, especially given Big Tech, like Big Tobacco before it, spends heavily on lobbying.
—Clare Duffy, CNN Money, 22 Feb. 2026
Sybil lives alone and spends her days fountain-penning personal letters and occasional emails that tell the story of her loves, losses, sorrows and deep regrets, through her alternately curmudgeonly and generous-hearted persona.
—Patricia Steckler, Baltimore Sun, 21 Feb. 2026
Celia Fernandez, CNBC, 27 Feb. 2026
BestReviews spends thousands of hours researching, analyzing and testing products to recommend the best picks for most consumers.
—Bestreviews, Chicago Tribune, 27 Feb. 2026
Even Harbour’s physicality — the actor has put on weight and spends much of the show in ill-fitting attire or partially disrobed — is meant to elicit more than one response.
—Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 27 Feb. 2026
For reference, Charlotte spends roughly $50 million on athletics, compared to Clemson’s $200 million.
—Hunter Bailey, Charlotte Observer, 27 Feb. 2026
Each tester spends at least a month on the new mattress—coming in over 2,500 hours with an eight-hour sleep schedule in mind for all of the picks in this story—taking notes and catching z’s.
—Kristi Kellogg, Architectural Digest, 27 Feb. 2026
If one company spends $300,000 proving its product supports sleep or immune function, every other brand using the same ingredient benefits for free.
—Elise Felicione, STAT, 26 Feb. 2026
Legal experts say lawsuits can sometimes be faster avenues for change, especially given Big Tech, like Big Tobacco before it, spends heavily on lobbying.
—Clare Duffy, CNN Money, 22 Feb. 2026
Sybil lives alone and spends her days fountain-penning personal letters and occasional emails that tell the story of her loves, losses, sorrows and deep regrets, through her alternately curmudgeonly and generous-hearted persona.
—Patricia Steckler, Baltimore Sun, 21 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for spends
Verb
-
The event pays tribute to Air Force Master Sgt.—
Linda Mcintosh,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
26 Feb. 2026
-
The general public pays more for goods and services without the cheap labor of immigrants.—
DP Opinion,
Denver Post,
25 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Wi-Fi consumes more power, so the Wi-Fi routers that connect devices to each other and the internet typically have to be plugged into an outlet.—
Shreyas Sen,
The Conversation,
23 Feb. 2026
-
My family consumes the world through a screen.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
22 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
In another story, Cara, a single parent, loses her apartment when her landlord refuses to fix her hot water heater.—
Max Klaver,
Miami Herald,
27 Feb. 2026
-
Each team needs a win for its NCAA Tournament resume, and whoever loses will probably need a run at the SEC Tournament to make the field.—
Tony Catalina,
Austin American Statesman,
27 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Stepping back from the noise, the news, and even our daily responsibilities from time to time gives us space to recharge, reflect, and find our center again.—
Raechal Shewfelt,
Entertainment Weekly,
24 Feb. 2026
-
German Member of European Parliament, S&D group and Chair of the International Trade Committee Bernd Lange gives a press conference on EU-US trade negotiations at the European Parliament, in Strasbourg on July 9, 2025.—
Holly Ellyatt,
CNBC,
24 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Board member Nicole Gribstad also urged the committee to include an option that delays such a decision and exhausts all other financial alternatives before closing schools.—
Molly Gibbs,
Mercury News,
11 Feb. 2026
-
But freedom of expression is a constant pursuit, as natural as breathing, and silencing it is an imperfect practice that exhausts the oppressor and energizes the oppressed.—
David Ehrlich,
IndieWire,
28 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Fife, the civil rights attorney, said counties’ failures to release people wastes taxpayer dollars but also robs people of their jobs, families and health care.—
Dallas Morning News,
Dallas Morning News,
19 Feb. 2026
-
Compared to many other countries, Texas wastes an extraordinary amount of water through outdated infrastructure, inefficient consumption, and lack of innovation.—
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
14 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Such a conviction, which appears in many more novels than Smallwood’s, drains fiction of life.—
Lily Meyer,
The Atlantic,
26 Feb. 2026
-
Many gardeners are plagued with sandy soil that drains too quickly, clay soil that retains water too long, or soil that simply doesn’t produce very vigorous plants.—
Anthony Reardon,
Kansas City Star,
25 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
But what absorbs him most is the intense kinship that the San feel with the elephants, to the point where, at a bonfire dance, a kind of cross-species migration of souls seems to take place.—
Justin Chang,
New Yorker,
27 Feb. 2026
-
The body absorbs them both well.—
Amy Brownstein,
Verywell Health,
27 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Spends.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/spends. Accessed 3 Mar. 2026.
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