spay

verb

ˈspā How to pronounce spay (audio)
 nonstandard  ˈspād
spayed ˈspād How to pronounce spay (audio)
 nonstandard  ˈspā-dəd
 ; spaying ˈspā-iŋ How to pronounce spay (audio)
 nonstandard  ˈspā-diŋ
Synonyms of spaynext

transitive verb

: to remove the ovaries and uterus of (a female animal)

Examples of spay in a Sentence

Our cat has been spayed.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Zweigart's nonprofit, Flatbush Cats, focuses on humanely trapping community cats in Brooklyn and spaying or neutering the animals to prevent them from adding to the stray population. —Claire Thornton, USA TODAY, 2 Aug. 2024 All rabbits available at Marin Humane have been spayed or neutered and vaccinated. —Lisa Bloch, The Mercury News, 1 Oct. 2024 All available dogs, puppies, cats and kittens will be spayed or neutered, microchipped and vaccinated. —Nwa Democrat-Gazette, arkansasonline.com, 27 Sep. 2024 Getting outdoor community cats vaccinated and neutered/spayed, then returning them to the outdoors. —Alex Golden, Axios, 8 Aug. 2024 See all Example Sentences for spay 

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Anglo-French espeer to pierce, castrate, from espee sword, from Latin spatha sword — more at spade

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of spay was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near spay

spawny

spay

spaz

See More Nearby Entries 

Cite this Entry

“Spay.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/spay. Accessed 1 Dec. 2024.

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Kids Definition

spay

verb
ˈspā How to pronounce spay (audio)
: to remove the ovaries and uterus of (a female animal)

Medical Definition

spay

transitive verb
ˈspā How to pronounce spay (audio)
spayed; spaying
: to remove the ovaries and uterus of (a female animal)

More from Merriam-Webster on spay

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for spay

Nglish: Translation of spay for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of spay for Arabic Speakers

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