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spill1 definition

spill (spil)

transitive verb spilled or spilt, spilling spill′·ing

  1. to allow or cause, esp. unintentionally or accidentally, to run, fall, or flow over from a container, usually so as to result in loss or waste who spilled the milk?
  2. to shed (blood)
    1. to empty the wind from (a sail)
    2. to lessen the pressure of (wind) on a sail
  3. to scatter at random from a receptacle or container
  4. to cause or allow (a rider, load, etc.) to fall off; throw off
  5. Informal to let (something secret) become known; divulge
  6. Obsolete
    1. to kill
    2. to destroy or ruin
    3. to squander; waste

Etymology: ME spillen < OE spillan, to destroy, squander, akin to MHG spillen, to split < IE base *(s)p(h)el-, to split, split off > spall, L spolium

intransitive verb

to be spilled from a container; overflow; run out

noun

  1. the act of spilling
  2. the amount spilled
  3. spillway
  4. a fall or tumble, as from a horse or from a vertical position
spill Idioms

spill one's guts

Slang to divulge everything one knows or reveal all one's personal problems

spill over

to overflow in superabundance or excess
spill2 definition

spill (spil)

noun

  1. a splinter
  2. a splinter, thin roll of paper, etc., set on fire and used to light a pipe, candle, etc.
  3. a paper cone or roll used as a container
  4. a small plug for stopping up a hole; spile
  5. a small metal peg, pin, or rod

Etymology: ME spille, prob. via dial. spil < ON spila, a splinter, akin to spile

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