The Oxford Thesaurus - An A-Z Dictionary Of Synonyms

joyride, ride, tour, excursion, outing, jaunt: On Sunday afternoons we sometimes went for a spin in the car.

spine n. 1 backbone, spinal column, vertebrae: He can't stand up straight - he has curvature of the spine. 2 thorn, needle,

barb, spike, spur, prong, quill, ray, barbel, bristle, prickle, Technical barbule, spicule or spiculum or spicula: The surface of the sea urchin is covered with needle-like spines.

spineless adj. 1 Technical invertebrate: There are more species of spineless creatures than those with internal backbones. 2 weak, feeble, flabby, irresolute, weak-willed, indecisive,

ineffectual, ineffective, impotent, powerless: After her reign, any king would appear spineless. 3 cowardly, dastardly, pusillanimous, timorous, lily-livered, white-livered, craven, fearful, timid, spiritless, squeamish, Colloq yellow, chicken-hearted, chicken, yellow-bellied, wimpish: She said you were spineless because you refused to go into the lions' cage.

spiral n. 1 helix, coil, corkscrew, screw, scroll; whorl, volute, turn, curl: In earlier Greek motifs, the spiral is commoner than the rectangular fret.

liveliness, vivacity, vivaciousness, panache, ‚lan, dash, spice, Colloq sauce, pepper: He needs to put more spirit into his sales presentation. 4 See spectre, 1, above. 5 bravery, courage, grit, backbone, valour, pluck, daring, stout-heartedness, manfulness, manliness, gameness, resoluteness, will, will-power, Colloq vim, spunk, get-up-and-go, (right) stuff, guts, US sand: Johnston has the spirit to be a marine. 6 meaning, sense, tenor, signification, purport, intent, intention, purpose, aim, implication, message, essence, quintessence, core, heart, meat, pith, substance, marrow: The spirit of the agreement is different from the way the lawyers worded the contract. Is it in keeping with the spirit of the law? 7 attitude, principle, thought, idea, inspiration, notion, feeling, inclination, impulse: Christmas is associated with the spirit of giving. 8 Often, spirits. temper, mood, sentiments, feelings, cheer, humour, frame of

mind; morale: I hope he took my criticism in good spirit. You seem to be in pretty good spirits today. My spirits are quite low. 9 spirits. a feelings, mood, temper, sentiments; morale, esprit de corps, team spirit: Spirits were high at the annual boat races. b alcohol, liquor, whisky, strong drink, Colloq booze, fire-water, Slang chiefly US and Canadian hooch or hootch: It is illegal to sell spirits to minors.

--v. 10 spirit away or off. abduct, make off or away with, carry off, transport, take away, kidnap, steal (off or away with), whisk away, abscond with; make disappear: A thief spirited away a painting from the exhibition. She was spirited away by a band of elves.

spirited adj. lively, sprightly, energetic, vigorous, animated, sparkling, dynamic, buoyant, effervescent, vivacious, ardent, mettlesome: The horse I chose was a bit too spirited. The barrister presented a spirited defence for his client. The 1970s saw spirited revivals of art nouveau and art deco styles.

spiritual adj. 1 sacred, ecclesiastic(al), churchly, clerical, priestly, devotional, holy, divine, sacerdotal, religious, non-secular: Father Craig was in charge of the spiritual aspects of our lives. 2 non-material, incorporeal, psychic(al), mental, psychological, inner: Spiritual needs are less easily satisfied than physical needs.

spiteful adj. rancorous, bitter, acrimonious, malevolent, malicious, venomous, hateful, invidious, hostile, antagonistic, unfriendly, unforgiving, retaliative or retaliatory, punitive, retributive

or retributory: Cutting off Colin's allowance because he forgot your birthday was a spiteful thing to do.

splash v. 1 spatter, bespatter, splatter, shower, spray, sprinkle, besprinkle, Brit splodge or US also splotch; mottle, spot: The painters splashed paint all over the floor. My freshly washed car was soon splashed with mud again. 2 blazon, spread, plaster: Was that your picture splashed across the front page of yesterday's paper?

--n. 3 spatter, spray, splatter, sprinkle, spot, stain, smear, smudge, Brit splodge or US also splotch: There's a splash of tomato sauce on the tablecloth. 4 impression, show, uproar, ado, brouhaha, sensation, commotion, excitement, US foofaraw, Colloq to-do: After all the advance publicity, he was sure to make a big splash in the theatre.

splendid adj. 1 splendorous, magnificent, resplendent, dazzling, gorgeous, showy, dashing, marvellous, spectacular, grand, glorious, lavish, ornate, sumptuous, majestic, brilliant, extraordinary, exceptional, superb, supreme, imposing, impressive, awe-inspiring, awesome, lush, plush, rich, luxurious, Colloq splendiferous, posh, swank(y), ritzy: The

mausoleum built by Shah Jehan for his wife was far more splendid than his own palace. 2 impressive, marvellous, brilliant,

eminent, prominent, superior, noteworthy, notable, celebrated, illustrious, famous, distinguished, exemplary, remarkable, admirable, conspicuous, outstanding, sublime, striking, extraordinary, successful, admirable, meritorious, creditable: His splendid victory at Waterloo was the climax of his military career. 3 excellent, superior, pre-eminent, fine, marvellous, extraordinary, exceptional, unbelievable, incredible, first-class, unequalled, unsurpassed, fabulous, peerless, matchless, nonpareil, superlative, praiseworthy, laudable, Brit brilliant, Colloq great, colossal, supercolossal, stupendous, fab, fantastic, super, smashing, A1 or A-1 or A-one, tiptop, capital, Brit brill, Slang far-out, way-out, dandy, cool, keen, US solid, out of sight, fantabulous, boss, neat, major: Bill is

a splendid dancer.

splendour n. 1 magnificence, grandeur, brilliance, display, radiance, resplendence, sumptuousness, stateliness, majesty, panoply, spectacle, show, glory, pomp, gorgeousness, dazzle, refulgence, beauty, splendidness, exquisiteness, luxuriousness, richness, lavishness, luxury, Colloq swankiness, poshness, swank, ritziness: There was nothing to match the splendour of the court of Louis XIV. 2 brilliance, shine, lustre, light,

effulgence, brightness, glitter, dazzle, refulgence, luminosity, luminousness, gloss: The splendour of the city's golden domes was reflected in the setting sun.

splice v. 1 join, unite, marry, bind, conjoin; knit, entwine, intertwine, braid, plait, twist, interlace: After the two rope ends are spliced together, they should be seized with marline.

--n. 2 joining, union, splicing, joint, connection or Brit connexion, tie, bond, binding, fastening, linking, linkage: A proper splice will probably be stronger than the single cable.

splinter n. 1 sliver, fragment, piece; scrap, shard, shred, chip: A splinter of glass is stuck in my finger.

--v. 2 shatter, break, fragment, split, disintegrate, smash to smithereens: The lamp hit the floor and splintered into a million pieces.

split v. 1 Often, split up or apart. divide, separate, cleave, cut or chop apart, cut or chop in two, pull or tear apart, rend, break or snap apart or in two, break up, come apart, rupture, partition, detach, become detached; bisect, dichotomize: He split the log with one blow of his axe. The ship split apart on the reef. The party may split on the tax issue. 2 Often, split

up. divorce, separate, go separate ways, break up, part company: After 30 years, the Hitchcocks have decided to split up. 3 Often, split up. branch, fork, diverge, separate: The road

splits to pass round the pond. 4 Often, split up. divide (up), apportion, deal out, dole out, distribute, allot, share or parcel out, carve up: Why don't we split the dinner bill five ways? 5 burst, crack or break up, fall apart or about, Slang bust: I laughed so much I thought I'd split! 6 leave, depart, go, Slang take a (run-out) powder, take it on the lam, beat it, scram, skedaddle: When they heard the sirens of the police cars, they split.

--n. 7 crack, cleft, fissure, chink, cranny, slit, slot,

crevice, groove, furrow, channel, sulcus; gap, hiatus, lacuna, opening, separation, division, chasm; rift, break, rupture, fracture; slash, gash, tear, rip, rent: The edges of the tectonic plates mark splits in the earth's crust. Pressure caused the splits in these plaster columns. I had to borrow a tablecloth to cover up the split in my trousers. 8 division, dichotomy, schism, breach, rupture, partition, disunion, discord; break, separation: Don't you think that the issue will cause a split within the party?

--adj. 9 divided, separated; halved, bisected, cleft; cut, broken, fractured: The result was a split vote along party lines. Their first containers were of split bamboo.

splurge n. 1 display, show, ostentatiousness, extravagance, indulgence, access, splash, burst, outburst, spree: In his final splurge he

bet everything on the number 14.

--v. 2 Often, splurge on. squander or dissipate or waste or burn (up) or throw away money (on), show off or flaunt one's

money, Slang blow everything (on): Victor splurged on toys for the children.

spoil v. 1 ruin, destroy, wreck, queer, mess up, upset, demolish, harm, damage, Colloq kill: You really spoiled everything by telling Mum about my pet frog. Spare the rod and spoil the child. 2 damage, mar, injure, harm, deface, disfigure, scar, blemish: The painting was spoiled by some fanatic who slashed it. 3 baby, mollycoddle, coddle, indulge, pamper, dote on, spoonfeed, Rare cocker: Barbara really spoils her family terribly by indulging their every whim. 4 turn, go off or bad, curdle, moulder, decay, decompose, become addle(d), rot, putrefy, mildew: The milk will spoil if not refrigerated. 5 be spoiling for. itch (for or after), yearn (for), be eager (for),

be keen (for), look for, be bent on, be desirous of, crave, be after: If you give Tom a drink he'll be spoiling for a fight. Oh, I thought he was always spoiling for a fight.

--n. 6 spoils. loot, booty, plunder, pillage, prizes, pickings, Slang swag, take, goods, boodle: The Nazis took the paintings as spoils of war.

spoilsport

n. killjoy, damper, dog in the manger, Colloq wet blanket, US party pooper: Some spoilsport tipped off Jane about her surprise birthday party.

subsidizer: Make a contribution and we will list you as a sponsor of the games. 2 (radio or television) advertiser: The American broadcasting catch-phrase 'A word from our sponsor' is not to be taken literally.

--v. 3 back, support, promote, fund, patronize, subsidize, finance, underwrite: Hughes agreed to sponsor a campaign to clean up the environment.

spontaneous

adj. 1 unannounced, unpremeditated, unplanned, impromptu, extemporaneous, extempore, unprepared, unrehearsed, offhand, ad lib, spur-of-the-moment, Colloq off the cuff: Miss Malkin's spontaneous speech could not have been better had it been

written out. 2 natural, unforced, unbidden, instinctive, instinctual, unconscious, reflex, automatic, mechanical, immediate, offhand, unguarded, unthinking, unwitting, involuntary, impetuous, impulsive, Slang knee-jerk: How could you doubt the sincerity of such an outburst of spontaneous affection? My spontaneous reaction is to beg you not to take up sky-diving.

sporadic adj. occasional, intermittent, random, irregular, uneven, erratic, chance, unexpected; spasmodic(al), fitful, periodic(al): There has been sporadic unrest in that area of the city.

sport n. 1 recreation, diversion, pastime, amusement, entertainment, play, distraction, relaxation, divertissement, pleasure, enjoyment, fun: I fish for sport, not to earn a living. 2

jest, humour, fun, mockery: They often call him rude names, but only in sport. 3 make sport of. tease, deride, make a laughing-stock (of), (hold up to) ridicule, make a fool of: She doesn't like it when you make sport of her husband.

--v. 4 frolic, gambol, cavort, romp, caper, play, frisk, lark, rollick, skip about: These octogenarians are sporting about like young foals. 5 show off, exhibit, flaunt, display, wear: Keith arrived, sporting the latest in Italian footwear.

sportive adj. frisky, gambolling, cavorting, frolicking, romping, capering, rollicking, sprightly, coltish, spirited, frolicsome, buoyant, gamesome, gay, kittenish, merry, playful, gleeful, light-hearted, blithe, prankish, waggish: He watched a sportive group of children playing hide-and-seek.

sportsmanship

n. fair play, sportsmanliness, fairness, honourableness, honesty, honour, probity, scrupulousness, integrity, uprightness, justice, justness: Good sportsmanship requires that the loser congratulate the winner.

picked out a lovely spot to build their new house. 3 morsel, bit, bite, Colloq smidgen or smidgin: Let's stop in here for a spot of tea. 4 predicament, situation, quandary, mess: John said he was in a bit of a spot, and needed to borrow œ20 until the end of the week. 5 spots. eruptions, pimples, acne,

pustules, blackheads, comedos or comedones, whiteheads; boils, blains, wens; pock-marks; Old-fashioned US and Canadian hickeys: Teenagers often get spots.

--v. 6 see, catch sight of, glimpse, discern, identify, pick out, distinguish, single out, detect, sight, recognize, make out, descry: I think I spotted Molly in the crowd. 7 mark, stain, fleck, speckle, spray, splash, spatter, bespatter, sully, soil, dirty, taint, besmirch, smudge: The car's shiny new paintwork was spotted with mud.

spotless adj. 1 immaculate, clean, gleaming, shiny, polished, unspotted, spick and span: The floor is so spotless you could eat off it.

2 pure, unsullied, unassailable, flawless, faultless,

untarnished, blameless, irreproachable: Samantha has a spotless reputation.

spotlight n. 1 arc light, searchlight, US pin spotlight, Colloq US (pin) spot: I couldn't see the audience with the spotlight shining in my eyes. 2 focus (of attention), limelight, public eye: How does it feel to have been in the spotlight most of your life, Miss Hallward?

--v. 3 light (up), illuminate, focus (light) upon or on, shine

or shed or throw or cast light upon or on, emphasize, highlight, draw attention to, feature, give prominence to, stress,

accentuate, accent, point up, underscore, underline, point up: The students held a sit-in to spotlight the cuts in their grants.

spotty adj. 1 spotted, dotted, speckled, freckled, flecked, blotched, blotchy, stained, marked, pied, piebald, brindle(d), skewbald, mottled, motley, dapple(d), macular, foxed; soiled, dirty; Brit splodgy, splodged or US also splotchy, splotched: Pages of some old books are spotty with brown stains. 2 pimply, pimpled, blotched, blotchy, acned, pock-marked, pocky, bad, Scots plouky or plooky: Ian used to have a spotty complexion, but it's clear now. 3 patchy, irregular, uneven, erratic, sporadic,

capricious, fitful: Radio reception in our area is spotty during electrical storms.

spout v. 1 discharge, emit, squirt, spurt, jet, shoot, gush, erupt, spew (up or out or forth), spit, eject, disgorge, vomit (up or forth), pour (out or forth), flow, stream: Steam spouts from many vents in Iceland. The water came spouting out of the hose and drenched me. 2 ramble on, rant, rave, carry on, pontificate, orate, declaim, hold forth, maunder (on), witter on, hold forth, expatiate, speechify, talk, Colloq go on, Brit rabbit on:

Harry, as usual, was spouting about his golf handicap.

--n. 3 waterspout, gargoyle, downspout, duct, drain, outlet, conduit: The rainwater drains into the gutters, then into the spouts. 4 up the spout. gone, lost, destroyed, beyond hope or recovery, to be written off or abandoned: Our dream of finding the treasure was now up the spout.

sprawl v. 1 spread (out), stretch (out), straddle, ramble, meander, wander, straggle, branch out: Greater Los Angeles sprawls over a huge area of some 450 square miles. 2 spread out, stretch out, loll, lounge, slouch, slump, recline, lie about or around: A dozen guests were sprawled on blankets at the beach party.

--n. 3 spread, stretch, expansion, extension: Some suburbs of large cities have been swallowed up in urban sprawl.

spray° v. 1 sprinkle, spatter, scatter, shower, disperse, diffuse, atomize, spread: Try to spray the insecticide evenly over the plants.

--n. 2 shower, sprinkling, drizzle, mist, sprinkle, spindrift or spoondrift: The strong wind carried the spray from the whitecaps right up into the streets of the town. 3 atomizer, sprayer, sprinkler, vaporizer, aerosol: Richard bought me a cologne spray for Mother's Day.

sprayý n. flower or floral arrangement, nosegay, posy, bouquet, sprig, branch, bough: The scores of tiny roses were interspersed with sprays of baby's-breath.

spread v. 1 Often, spread out. diffuse, distribute, disperse, disseminate, broadcast, sow, scatter, strew, shed, dispel, dissipate: Spread the mulch as evenly as possible to a depth of several inches. 2 Often, spread about or around. broadcast, publicize, make known, bruit about, air, televise, circulate, publish, distribute, disseminate, trumpet, announce, pronounce, promulgate, advertise, enounce, make public, tell the world, herald, repeat, recite: Start spreading the news: I'm leaving today. 3 Often, spread out. unfold, draw out, display, stretch out, open out, extend, lay out, fan out, unroll, unfurl: Please spread the cloth on the table. 4 Often, spread out. stretch (out), extend, protract, prolong, drag out, distribute,

disperse: The bank said I could spread the payments over twenty years. 5 Often, spread out. stretch, extend, separate, put

apart or out, part: He spread his arms and Lorna rushed into them. 6 grow, develop, increase, broaden, expand, extend, widen, enlarge, mushroom, proliferate, sprawl, branch out; metastasize: To meet the demand for the pies, bakeries began to spread throughout the country. The cancer, unchecked, was bound to spread. 7 smear, apply, smooth, put, rub, cover, layer,

plaster, plate, coat, wash, glaze, paint, varnish, overlay, overspread; cloak, mantle, swaddle, wrap, blanket: I was careful to spread the paint evenly, avoiding streaks. When the cake has cooled, spread the chocolate icing over it.

--n. 8 spreading, extension, extending, expansion, expanding, enlargement, enlarging, development, developing, increase, increasing, proliferation, proliferating, broadening, growth, widening, mushrooming, dispersion, dispersal, dispersing, dissemination, disseminating, distribution, distributing, dispensation, dispensing: The spread of the disease is uncontrolled. One of the functions of a university is to encourage the spread of knowledge. 9 extent, expanse, area,