SPENDS Synonyms: 98 Similar and Opposite Words

spends

verb

present tense third-person singular of spend

as in pays

to hand over or use up in payment I always end up spending too much money at the mall

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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

as in loses

to use up carelessly spent all his energy on impractical schemes

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Example Sentences

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.

Recent Examples of spends Gray is central to the investment calls Blackstone makes, and spends his weekends reading memos on potential deals in preparation for his weekly investment committee meetings. — Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson, semafor.com, 28 Aug. 2026 Our roads get a D+ by the American Society of Civil Engineers, which found Colorado spends 35% more on car repairs than the national average. — Shaun Boyd, CBS News, 28 Aug. 2026 The average family caregiver spends 27 hours a week on care, Resendez told me, and many put in 40 hours or more. — Elissa Strauss, CNN Money, 27 Aug. 2026 While earlier sitcom crews met up at a coffee shop or a bar, young people like Billie—who spends her days submitting dozens of job applications without a single reply—are scarcely in a position to treat the city as their playground. — Inkoo Kang, New Yorker, 27 Aug. 2026 Teng spends time with Mark Perlmutter, a North Carolina surgeon who, like Teng’s other subjects, volunteers in Gaza, treating the many who have been severely injured in the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict. — Los Angeles Times, 21 Aug. 2026 Cuomo spends a lot of the album chewing over a middle-aged indecisiveness that mirrors the journey of his fans, adding a drolly poignant tinge to a warmly familiar sound. — Jon Dolan, Rolling Stone, 20 Aug. 2026 Avid hiker Bob Siegel spends hours exploring nature trails that wind around mountain ridges and stoop through valley floors. — Stephanie Lam, Mercury News, 20 Aug. 2026 The league president told ABC 10News on Monday that the league typically spends between $60,000 and $70,000 to operate a spring season, costs that go toward field maintenance, equipment, uniforms, vendors and more. — Caleb Lunetta, San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 Aug. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for spends

Verb

The government created a national preventive care program decades ago and gave every citizen a right to regular checkups, which gave clinics a reason to buy expensive machines, which brought the volume that pays for the expensive machines.

— Christopher Elliott, Forbes.com, 29 Aug. 2026
The Avon Historical Society pays the liability for the inside of the building and the structural repairs, like the roof, are the town’s responsibility.

— Sean Krofssik, Hartford Courant, 28 Aug. 2026

Definition of pays

Verb

That figure assumes the vehicle consumes 100 watt-hours per mile and its solar panels deliver at least four kWh of usable energy to the battery during the day.

— Georgina Jedikovska, Interesting Engineering, 28 Aug. 2026
Many facilities use evaporative cooling, which consumes water to remove server heat.

— Mark Drapeau, Fortune, 25 Aug. 2026

Definition of consumes

Verb

The genius of work divided loses none of its luster when the Chinese are participating in the work, not to mention the peaceful implications of market goods easily crossing borders.

— John Tamny, Forbes.com, 29 Aug. 2026
The movie stars the late Murphy as Molly, a rich girl who loses her fortune and has to find a job.

— Kara Nesvig, Parents, 29 Aug. 2026

Definition of loses

Verb

The delicate shape still nods to classic ballet flats, but the slight heel gives everything a little more polish, making the pairing feel less Sunday lunch with your nan and more Copenhagen Fashion Week.

— Georgia Brown, Glamour, 29 Aug. 2026
The deal gives the United States 55% effective output of the new private company, including an ownership stake and rights to buy oil at cost.

— Collin Binkley, Los Angeles Times, 29 Aug. 2026

Definition of gives

Verb

If a bureaucratic process exhausts whatever time a citizen has available, then benefits are lost or rights are denied.

— Joshua Rothman, New Yorker, 14 Aug. 2026
That’s because even ordinary winds – and far worse, storms and earthquakes – cause tall buildings to sway, which ruins people’s concentration, wrecks their mood, and even exhausts them.

— New Atlas, New Atlas, 24 July 2026

Definition of exhausts

Verb

This combination matters because a transistor that survives high voltage but wastes large amounts of energy through resistance would still be of limited use.

— Rupendra Brahambhatt, Interesting Engineering, 30 Aug. 2026
Lanterns wastes little time explaining this backstory ad nauseam and instead creates an immediately inviting dynamic between him and Hal, who comes to him demanding information on Manhunters.

— Siddhant Adlakha, Vulture, 24 Aug. 2026

Definition of wastes

Verb

Once the cycle is complete, the dirty water drains away and you’re left with clean, wet clothing.

— Mary Catherine McAnnally Scott, Southern Living, 21 Aug. 2026
Defensiveness extends conversations, weakens credibility and drains emotional energy that could have been directed toward solving problems.

— Rodger Dean Duncan, Forbes.com, 13 Aug. 2026

Definition of drains

Verb

This outer layer absorbs physical stress directly, protecting the delicate internal materials from bending or cracking under load.

— Aman Tripathi, Interesting Engineering, 26 Aug. 2026
As Altman absorbs the public’s fears and frustrations over AI, the company has recently sought to elevate Brockman’s profile as a counterweight.

— Alex Heath, Time, 26 Aug. 2026