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 wastes
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
North Carolina spends less on mental health and offers less access to care than most states — a gap highlighted after a woman was fatally stabbed on Charlotte’s Blue Line by a man with an alleged history of mental illness.
—
Nora O'Neill, Charlotte Observer, 16 Sep. 2025
About 1 in 3 renters in the Los Angeles metro area spends 50% or more of their post-tax household income on rent.
—Stan Oklobdzija, Mercury News, 16 Sep. 2025
The film follows Rico, who spends his summer selling cocktails and chasing girls.
—Brent Lang, Variety, 16 Sep. 2025
Royer, who's worked for Ford for 15 years, spends part of his day modeling clay sculptures of cars in what's left of Ford's old Product Development Center in Dearborn across from The Henry Ford.
—Jamie L. Lareau, Freep.com, 16 Sep. 2025
While Grisham brings value with his glove at a key defensive position, Rice has fairly unique 1B/C versatility, but is not a particularly good defender at either spot, and spends a significant amount of time at DH.
—Tony Blengino, Forbes.com, 15 Sep. 2025
As evidenced by his Instagram, Schwarzenegger spends a lot of time with his famous family, and Champion does too.
—Arielle Tschinkel, PEOPLE, 8 Sep. 2025
Keanu Reeves leads the ensemble cast as Gabriel, a low-ranking guardian angel who spends his days presiding over Los Angeles drivers who text behind the wheel.
—Jessica Wang, Entertainment Weekly, 7 Sep. 2025
After one of his clients stiffs him, Veneno runs into Muñeco (Osvaldo Sanchez), a trucker in his 40s who spends long weeks away from his estranged family, drinking and doing drugs to stay awake on the job.
—Jordan Mintzer, HollywoodReporter, 6 Sep. 2025
Nora O'Neill, Charlotte Observer, 16 Sep. 2025
About 1 in 3 renters in the Los Angeles metro area spends 50% or more of their post-tax household income on rent.
—Stan Oklobdzija, Mercury News, 16 Sep. 2025
The film follows Rico, who spends his summer selling cocktails and chasing girls.
—Brent Lang, Variety, 16 Sep. 2025
Royer, who's worked for Ford for 15 years, spends part of his day modeling clay sculptures of cars in what's left of Ford's old Product Development Center in Dearborn across from The Henry Ford.
—Jamie L. Lareau, Freep.com, 16 Sep. 2025
While Grisham brings value with his glove at a key defensive position, Rice has fairly unique 1B/C versatility, but is not a particularly good defender at either spot, and spends a significant amount of time at DH.
—Tony Blengino, Forbes.com, 15 Sep. 2025
As evidenced by his Instagram, Schwarzenegger spends a lot of time with his famous family, and Champion does too.
—Arielle Tschinkel, PEOPLE, 8 Sep. 2025
Keanu Reeves leads the ensemble cast as Gabriel, a low-ranking guardian angel who spends his days presiding over Los Angeles drivers who text behind the wheel.
—Jessica Wang, Entertainment Weekly, 7 Sep. 2025
After one of his clients stiffs him, Veneno runs into Muñeco (Osvaldo Sanchez), a trucker in his 40s who spends long weeks away from his estranged family, drinking and doing drugs to stay awake on the job.
—Jordan Mintzer, HollywoodReporter, 6 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for spends
Verb
-
Whelan said that a costuming Easter egg in the play pays tribute to original Love Boat captain Gavin MacLeod.—
Wesley Stenzel,
Entertainment Weekly,
12 Sep. 2025
-
For professionals seeking meaningful work that pays well and makes a difference, the opportunities in 2025 are both diverse and enduring.—
Monica Sanders,
Forbes.com,
11 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Spotify users will be able to set lossless audio listening — which consumes more bandwidth — for Wi-Fi and cellular connectivity, as well as downloads for offline listening.—
Todd Spangler,
Variety,
10 Sep. 2025
-
Having no modules between cell and pack consumes less space and improves energy density.—
James Morris,
Forbes.com,
7 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Several in attendance Monday took the opportunity to address the crowd, arguing that canceling active missions wastes taxpayer dollars already spent and undermines relationships with international partners who have invested their own time and resources in such projects.—
Josh Dinner,
Space.com,
16 Sep. 2025
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Messy data wrecks forecasts, distorts reporting and wastes time.—
Thasha Batts,
Forbes.com,
15 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Bankruptcy law, at § 365, essentially gives the trustee of the bankruptcy estate the right to either accept an executory contract (meaning that the trustee will have to render performance to get the benefit) or can reject the contract and forfeit the benefit.—
Jay Adkisson,
Forbes.com,
17 Sep. 2025
-
By late summer, ICE began showing up at job sites, which gives it a much bigger return on its investment.—
Anna Giaritelli,
The Washington Examiner,
17 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
The whole ordeal exhausts the mother turtle.—
Taylor Hagood,
Sun Sentinel,
4 Aug. 2025
-
The idea of festivals just exhausts me.—
Meg Zukin,
Los Angeles Times,
5 Apr. 2025
Verb
-
The deeper the water, the sooner a vehicle loses traction on the road.—
NC Weather Bot,
Charlotte Observer,
13 Sep. 2025
-
Seizures or other involuntary movements ensue, progressively getting worse as the person loses more control over their body.—
Mary Walrath-Holdridge,
USA Today,
12 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Reopening is dependent on how well the area drains.—
Gillian Stawiszynski,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
11 Sep. 2025
-
Put It Into Practice Be specific about your current situation, including what energizes and drains you.—
Caroline Castrillon,
Forbes.com,
11 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
This type of fiber absorbs water, helping stool to pass through the digestive system.—
Amber J. Tresca,
Verywell Health,
10 Sep. 2025
-
This results because Earth's atmosphere absorbs relatively short wavelengths of light, letting only the longer-wavelength reddish hues through to paint the lunar surface.—
Mike Wall,
Space.com,
9 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Spends.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/spends. Accessed 17 Sep. 2025.
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