spend
- 01 A1 Beginner
v.to give money to pay for goods or services.
v.to pay out or disburse money in exchange for goods or services. Transitive, requiring a financial amount or a general object like 'money'.
Simple“We spent too much money on dinner at that expensive restaurant.”
In context“The department spent its entire annual budget on upgrading the server infrastructure before the fiscal year concluded.”
UsageTakes the preposition 'on' before the item purchased.
PitfallI spent much money for the car. I spent a lot of money on the car.Use the preposition 'on' when mentioning the item you bought, and prefer 'a lot of' over 'much' in positive sentences.
- 02 A1 Beginner
v.to use time doing a specific activity or being in a certain place.
v.to pass or occupy a period of time. Often followed by a gerund (-ing form) or a prepositional phrase.
Simple“I spent the whole afternoon reading a book in the park.”
In context“She spent several months researching the historical archives to ensure the accuracy of her biographical novel.”
UsageCommonly followed by a time duration and a verb in the -ing form.
PitfallI spent two hours for doing my homework. I spent two hours doing my homework.When 'spend' refers to time, follow it directly with the -ing form of the verb, not 'for doing'.
- 03 B2 Upper Intermediate
v.to use up all of something, like energy or strength.
v.to exhaust or wear out a resource, particularly physical energy or force. Often used in the passive voice or as a past participle.
Simple“The long climb up the mountain had spent all his energy.”
In context“By the time the storm had spent its fury, the coastal village was left with significant structural damage.”
- 04 B2 Upper Intermediate
n.the total amount of money that a person or company spends.
n.the total amount of money expended during a specific period or on a particular project.
Simple“The company needs to reduce its marketing spend this year.”
In context“The government's annual spend on public infrastructure has increased significantly to stimulate the local economy.”
UsageCommon in business and government contexts; often functions as an uncountable noun.
Synonyms
spend vs save — Save is keeping resources for later, while spend is using them up now.
Usage spend time · spend money · spend a lot
From Middle English spenden, from Old English spendan (attested especially in compounds āspendan (“to spend”), forspendan (“to use up, consume”)), from Proto-West Germanic *spendōn (“to spend”), borrowed from Latin expendere (“to weigh out”). Doublet of expend. Cognate with Old High German spentōn (“to consume, use, spend”) (whence German spenden (“to donate, provide”)), Middle Dutch spenden (“to spend, dedicate”), Old Icelandic spenna (“to spend”).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.