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
Barden spends a lot of time speaking to agents and other athlete representatives.
—
Liam Tharme, New York Times, 25 Apr. 2026
How Gen X spends Shoppers are seen outside the French multinational personal care and beauty retail brand Sephora store in Spain.
—Laya Neelakandan, CNBC, 25 Apr. 2026
The Thriller Title Track Wasn’t Michael’s Idea Michael spends a lot of time on the creation of Thriller, and Jackson tacks song titles to the wall one by one as the album comes together.
—Andy Greene, Rolling Stone, 25 Apr. 2026
But Pritchard, who spends hours each offseason working on those exact situations, took one half-step to his right and two to his left to lose Oubre, then buried a 26-footer as the horn sounded.
—Zack Cox, Hartford Courant, 25 Apr. 2026
One of Morgan’s priorities is to increase transparency around how California spends public dollars by publishing state agencies’ ledgers online and in real time.
—William Melhado, Sacbee.com, 25 Apr. 2026
That's far shy of her near-year on the ISS during her first mission, or the six months a station crew typically spends on board.
—Elizabeth Howell, Space.com, 24 Apr. 2026
BestReviews spends thousands of hours researching, analyzing and testing products to recommend the best picks for most consumers.
—Bestreviews, Mercury News, 24 Apr. 2026
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
Liam Tharme, New York Times, 25 Apr. 2026
How Gen X spends Shoppers are seen outside the French multinational personal care and beauty retail brand Sephora store in Spain.
—Laya Neelakandan, CNBC, 25 Apr. 2026
The Thriller Title Track Wasn’t Michael’s Idea Michael spends a lot of time on the creation of Thriller, and Jackson tacks song titles to the wall one by one as the album comes together.
—Andy Greene, Rolling Stone, 25 Apr. 2026
But Pritchard, who spends hours each offseason working on those exact situations, took one half-step to his right and two to his left to lose Oubre, then buried a 26-footer as the horn sounded.
—Zack Cox, Hartford Courant, 25 Apr. 2026
One of Morgan’s priorities is to increase transparency around how California spends public dollars by publishing state agencies’ ledgers online and in real time.
—William Melhado, Sacbee.com, 25 Apr. 2026
That's far shy of her near-year on the ISS during her first mission, or the six months a station crew typically spends on board.
—Elizabeth Howell, Space.com, 24 Apr. 2026
BestReviews spends thousands of hours researching, analyzing and testing products to recommend the best picks for most consumers.
—Bestreviews, Mercury News, 24 Apr. 2026
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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for spends
Verb
-
Wells pays someone to mow her lawn.—
David A. Lieb,
Fortune,
29 Apr. 2026
-
The state’s Next Level Jobs program pays the tuition for students to take classes for high-demand jobs, Dulin said.—
Doug Ross,
Chicago Tribune,
29 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The reason this is important, says Lab Group Manager for R&D Alok Warey, is because aerodynamic drag consumes a lot of battery energy in EVs—up to 50 percent.—
Kristin Shaw,
Popular Science,
30 Apr. 2026
-
Put simply, food noise consumes your life.—
Alora Bopray,
USA Today,
28 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The deeper the water, the sooner a vehicle loses traction on the road.—
KANSAS CITY STAR WEATHER BOT,
Kansas City Star,
24 Apr. 2026
-
If his preferred candidate loses, Newsom could emerge politically weakened, possibly undercutting his standing ahead of a 2028 presidential bid.—
Barnini Chakraborty,
The Washington Examiner,
24 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
And that gives Ukraine a huge win globally.—
Sudarsan Raghavan,
New Yorker,
28 Apr. 2026
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Simmons is right that the glasses are super-thin, which gives them a delightful hand feel no matter the beverage.—
Jennifer Zyman,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
28 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
If the search for a large outdoor planter exhausts you—just get a terra-cotta planter.—
Julia Harrison,
Architectural Digest,
6 Apr. 2026
-
As the oil blockade quickly exhausts Cuba’s supply of fuel, triggering a series of lengthy, island-wide blackouts, many here are exhausted and are becoming increasingly vocal about their desire for fundamental changes in Cuba.—
Kate Linthicum,
Los Angeles Times,
29 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Why do Californians, most of whom also believe the state wastes taxpayer money anyway, support the BWT?—
Robertas Bakula,
Oc Register,
23 Apr. 2026
-
Watering for too long, at the wrong time of day, or incorrectly costs money and wastes a precious resource.—
Lauren David,
Southern Living,
13 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
This idea of reasonableness is easily caricatured as moral timidity or a bloodless neutrality that drains politics of passion.—
Nikhil Krishnan,
New Yorker,
20 Apr. 2026
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That’s why a fine textured soil, like clay, drains more poorly than does a coarse, sandy soil.—
Paul Cappiello,
Louisville Courier Journal,
17 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Unlike many mineral sunscreens that can sit heavily on the skin, this one absorbs quickly and has a lightweight, smoothing effect.—
Brigitt Earley,
Glamour,
24 Apr. 2026
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The luciferase catalyzes the oxidation of luciferin, producing blue light, which GFP then absorbs and re-emits as green fluorescence.—
Samantha Agate,
Charlotte Observer,
23 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Spends.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/spends. Accessed 1 May. 2026.
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