spew

1 of 2

verb

spewed; spewing; spews

intransitive verb

1
: vomit
2
: to come forth in a flood or gush
3
: to ooze out as if under pressure : exude

transitive verb

1
: vomit
2
: to send or cast forth with vigor or violence or in great quantity
a volcano spewing out ash
often used with out
spewer noun

spew

2 of 2

noun

1
: matter that is vomited : vomit
2
: material that exudes or is extruded

Examples of spew in a Sentence

Verb Exhaust spewed out of the car. Smoke and ashes spewed from the volcano. The volcano spewed hot ash. The faucet started spewing dirty water. The dog spewed vomit on the rug.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Verb
The waves reached the front steps of the elementary school, spewing wreckage across the playground where Sasaki’s Little League team was scheduled to start practices later that month. Stephen J. Nesbitt, The Athletic, 14 Jan. 2025 The probe has already braved coronal mass ejections, major blowups that spew the sun’s plasma out into the solar system. Becky Ferreira, New York Times, 24 Dec. 2024
Noun
Hawkins makes this seem like a monumental spew of words rather than benign chitchat. Matthew Schnipper, The Atlantic, 6 Jan. 2025 Along with cucumber engorgement, other physical changes in the plant before and during the explosion shaped the angle, height and distance of a successful seed spew, according to the study. Mindy Weisberger, CNN, 27 Nov. 2024 See all Example Sentences for spew 

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English, from Old English spīwan; akin to Old High German spīwan to spit, Latin spuere, Greek ptyein

First Known Use

Verb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of spew was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near spew

Cite this Entry

“Spew.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/spew. Accessed 20 Jan. 2025.

Kids Definition

spew

1 of 2 verb
: to send or come out in a flood or gush

spew

2 of 2 noun
: matter that is spewed out

More from Merriam-Webster on spew

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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