Spent & Spend
Spend is an irregular verb with two main meaning. Irregular verbs are verbs that do not follow the general rules for verb forms. The first meaning of the word spend is to use up, consume, disburse, expend, dispose of money or resources while the other meaning is to pass time in a particular manner, place etc. Spent on the other hand is the past and past participle of Spend. In this regard, spend indicates a present action whereas spent indicates a past action.
Spend -Meaning & Usage
Spend is used to indicate present or future. For example:
- (Future), Jayden will spend money tomorrow on food.
- (Present), Please spend some money now on food.
Spend finds a vast application in things like time and money. For example,
- (Time): I usually spend my free time on Internet.
- (Money): I spend my entire profits on charity.
Spend does not express completeness of an action. For example:
- Jayden will spend money tomorrow on food.
- Some money has to be spend on food.
- Please spend some money on food.
- Why don’t you spend some time with me?
- Will you spend some time in Australia?
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Spent-Meaning & Usage
Spent is used to indicate past. For example:
- Jayden spent money yesterday on food.
- Obama spent some money on charity in Honolulu.
- He spent some a couple of weeks in Massachusetts.
- David spent a lot of money on alcohol in Washington DC.
- Calvin Spent the whole day in the library reading American history.
Spent finds a vast application in things, people, animals and time. For example:
- (People): After she spent her energy, she collapsed on the floor.
- (People): Dorothy spent her good brains on scientific innovations.
- (Things): I don’t Spent my effort on things like this.
- (Things): I spent most my energy on matters that are of no benefit to my family.
- (Things): I spent sleepless nights building my online business.
- (Animals): The Bobcat Spent its energy running around.
- (Animals): The lion spent its entire life in the zoo.
- (Time): I spent my weekend in Texas.
- (Time): The lady spent her entire salary on clothing.
Spent is used to express a complete action. For example:
- Vera spent her energy building a bad relationship.
- Johnny Spent his entire salary on home furniture.
- Baba spent half of his life in Canada.
- Mama spent sleepless nights working on her dream
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Spent Vs Spend In Tabular Form
| BASIS OF COMPARISON | SPENT | SPEND |
| Meaning | To pass (time) in a particular manner, place etc: We spent a few days in Kazakhstan. To use up, consume or exhaust. | To pay out, disburse or expend, dispose of (money, wealth, resources etc. For example, Am about to spend money on my wedding. To employ (labor, thought, words, time etc) as on some object or in some proceeding. For example: Don’t spend a lot of effort on it. |
| Use | Spent is used to indicate past. | Spend is used to indicate present or future. |
| Application | Spent finds a vast application in things, people, animals and time. | Spend finds a vast application in things like time and money. |
| Action | Spent is used to express a complete action. | Spend does not express completeness of an action. |
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