spendaholic
1340
money on advertising. | He spent all his winnings on a slap-up meal. | Would you spend £200 on a new coat? | The repairs cost quite a lot, but it was money well spent. (= a sensible way of spending money) 2 [T+obj+v-ing/adv/prep] to pass or use (time): We spent a pleasant hour or two talking with our friends. | He's spent half his life writing this book. | Where shall we spend our holidays? | He spent three years in prison. 3 [T] especially lit to wear out or use completely: The storm soon spent itself/its force. 4 spend a penny BrE euph for URINATE
spend·a·hol·ic /ˌspendəˈhɒlɪk||-ˈhɑː-/ also compulsive shopper n AmE a person who is unable to stop spending money and buying more and more things
spend·er /ˈspendər/ n a person who spends money in the stated amounts or ways: This is a shop for big spenders. (=is an expensive shop)
Spender, Sir Ste·phen /'stiːvən/ (1909-95) an English poet and CRITIC whose books of poetry include The Still Centre and The Generous Days
'spending, money n [U] POCKET MONEY
spend·thrift /'spend,θrɪft/ n derog a person who spends money wastefully; EXTRAVAGANT person
Spen·ser, Ed·mund /ˈspensər, ˈedmənd/ (?1552-99) an English poet famous especially for his EPIC poem The Faerie Queene which he never finished
spent¹ /spent/ past tense & past participle of SPEND
spent² adj 1 already used; no longer for use: spent cartridges | spent fuel rods from a nuclear power plant | (fig.) Do you think Scottish nationalism is now a spent force? (=no longer has power or influence) 2 [F] lit worn out; extremely tired
sperm /spɜːm||spɜːrm/ n pl. sperm or sperms 1 [C] a cell produced by the sex organs of a male animal, which usually swims in a liquid and is able to unite with the female egg to produce new life 2 [U] the liquid from the male sex organs in which these swim; SEMEN
sper·ma·cet·i /ˌspɜːməˈsetil-ˌsiːr-/ n [U] a solid oily substance found in the head of the sperm whale and used in making skin creams, candles, etc.
sper·ma·to·zo·a /ˌspɜːmətəˈzəʊəl-ˌziːə-/ n [P] tech SPERMS
'sperm bank n a place in which SEMEN is kept to be used in medical operations to help women to become PREGNANT
sper·mi·cide /'spɜːmɪsaɪd||'spɜːr-/ n [C;U] a substance that kills sperms, used as a cream or liquid during the sex act for stopping women from becoming PREGNANT
'sperm whale n a large WHALE which is hunted for the oil in its very large head (SPERMACETI) and for fat
Sper·ry, El·mer Am·brose /ˌsperi, ˈelmər ˈæmbrəʊz/ (1860-1930) a US engineer and inventor, known especially for inventing equipment that helps ships to sail in the right direction
spew /spjuː/ v 1 [+adv/prep;T+obj+adv/prep] to (cause to) come out in a rush or flood: Lava spewed forth from the volcano. | The burst pipe was spewing out dirty water: | a factory spewing toxic fumes into the atmosphere 2 [I ;T(UP)] BrE slang for VOMIT
SPF/es piː 'ef/ abbrev. for Sun Protection Factor; a number which is written on a bottle of SUNTAN cream to show how much protection it gives from the sun. For example, SPF 30 gives high protection and SPF 3 gives low protection.
sphag·num /'sfægnəm/ n [C;U] any of a large group of MOSSES growing in wet areas which can go to make up PEAT and which are used by gardeners for packing plants
-sphere → see WORD FORMATION TABLE
sphere /sfɪə/ n 1 a round shape in space; ball-shaped mass; solid figure all points of which are equally distant from a centre: The Earth is not a perfect sphere. 2 an area or range of interest or activity: a well-known personality in the sphere of broadcasting | Government is extending its sphere of influence to cover all parts of our lives. 3 old use or lit any of the transparent shells containing stars, PLANETS etc, that were formerly thought to turn around the Earth
spher·i·cal /'sferɪkəl/ adj having the shape of a sphere; ball-shaped
sphe·roid /'sfɪərɔɪd/ n tech a shape which is not quite a sphere, especially one that is slightly longer in one direction and has two endpoints
sphinc·ter /'sfɪŋktər/ n med a muscle which surrounds and can tighten to close a passage in the body: the anal sphincter
sphinx /sfɪŋks/ n an ancient Egyptian image of a lion, lying down, with a human head
Sphinx, the 1 the Great Sphinx a large, very ancient sphinx which is close to the Pyramids of El Giza in Egypt and is visited by many tourists 2 in Greek MYTHOLOGY, a creature with the head of a woman and the body of a lion. She lay outside Thebes and killed people who could not answer her RIDDLE (=very difficult question). Oedipus answered the riddle, and the Sphinx killed herself.
spic, spik /spɪk/ n AmE derog slang a Spanish-speaking American, especially a Puerto Rican (considered extremely offensive)
spice¹ /spaɪs/ n 1 [C;U] any of various vegetable products used, especially in powder form, for giving a taste to other foods: Pepper and nutmeg are spices. | a spice rack 2 [S;U] interest or excitement, especially as added to something else: He put in a few risqué stories to add spice to the speech. | They say variety is the spice of life. (=makes life more interesting)
spice² v [T(UP, with)] to add spice to
Spice Girls, The a British POP GROUP made up of five young women that was very popular in the 1990s. They said they were examples of "girl power' because they were confident and independent young women. The Spice Girls stopped performing together in 1998. → see also BECKHAM, VICTORIA
spick-and-span /ˌspɪk ən ˈspæn/ adj (of a room, house etc) completely clean and tidy
spic·y /'spaɪsi/ adj 1 having or producing a pleasantly strong taste and smell; containing or tasting like SPICE: hot spicy food 2 exciting, especially from being slightly shocking or rude: spicy stories —ily adv —iness n [U]
spi·der /'spaɪdər/ n a small eight-legged creature which makes silk threads, usually into COBWEBS for catching insects to eat
Spider·man /'spaɪdərman||-dər-/ trademark an imaginary HERO of CARTOON STRIPS and films who is able to climb very high walls like a SPIDER and catch criminals in a WEB which he throws over them → compare SUPERMAN
spi·der·web /'spaidəweb||-dər-/ n AmE for COBWEB
spi·der·y /'spaidəri/ adj long and thin like a spider's legs: the old lady's spidery writing
spiel /ʃpiːl, spiːl/ n [C;U] slang, usually derog fast talk, especially intended to persuade: the salesman's spiel
Spiel·berg, Ste·ven /'spiːlbɜːg||-bɜːrg, 'stiːvən/ (1946-) one of the most successful film directors in the history of US cinema, known especially for making films that are full of exciting events and SPECIAL EFFECTS. He won two Oscars, for Schindler's List (1994) and Saving Private Ryan (1999). His other films include Jaws, Raiders of the Lost Ark, E.T., and Jurassic Park. He now has his own film studio called DreamWorks.
spig·ot /'spigət/ n 1 an apparatus for turning on and off a flow of liquid from a container, especially a barrel 2 especially AmE an outdoor TAP
spike¹ /spaɪk/ n 1 something long and thin with a sharp point, especially a pointed piece of metal: spikes along the top of a fence 2 any of the metal points fixed in the bottom of a shoe for holding the ground, especially in sports 3 tech (on a GRAPH) a sharp, especially upward, point describing a change 4 the head of a grain-producing plant such as corn or wheat
spike² v [T] 1 to drive a spike or spikes into 2 [(with)] to add a strong alcoholic drink to (a weak or nonalcoholic one) 3 to stop (especially an article in a newspaper) from being printed or spread: The editor spiked the story. | The government spiked the rumour 4 spike someone's guns BrE infml to prevent someone from attacking; take away an opponent's power