spade
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spade¹
- /speɪ̯d/
- /sped/ Scotland
Sounds like spayed (except Scotland) · Rhymes with -eɪd
Where it comes from
From Middle English spade, from Old English spada, spade, spadu (“spade”), from Proto-Germanic *spadô. Doublet of spatha, spathe, and épée.
noun spades
- A garden tool with a handle and a flat blade for digging. Not to be confused with a shovel which is used for moving earth or other materials. 'Make your mind easy,' Ratsey said; 'I have dug too often in this graveyard for any to wonder if they see me with a spade.'
- A cutting instrument used in flensing a whale.
- A device for terminating an electrical conductor resembling a small spade.
verb spades · spading · spaded
- To turn over soil with a spade to loosen the ground for planting.
- To move with a spade, or as with a spade. ‘Le baccarat,’ intoned the croupier as he spaded the thick chips over the table to Bond.
spade²
- /speɪ̯d/
- /sped/ Scotland
Sounds like spayed (except Scotland) · Rhymes with -eɪd
Where it comes from
Probably from Italian spade, plural of spada (“the ace of spades”, literally “sword, spade”), from earlier *spata, from Latin spatha, from Ancient Greek σπᾰ́θη (spắthē). Cognate with Etymology 1. So called for the shape, though what the shape was exactly meant to represent has been debated.
noun spades
- A playing card marked with the symbol ♠. I've got only one spade in my hand.
- A black person. And as for a divorce, I know plenty spades right here in Harlem get married any time they want to.
spade³
- /speɪ̯d/
- /sped/ Scotland
Sounds like spayed (except Scotland) · Rhymes with -eɪd
verb
- simple past and past participle of spay
Spade⁴
proper noun Spades
- A surname.
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: shovel, bucket, poker, dustpan, dig, scoop, broom, spike, sword, pike, skin, wood, jab, bob, pill, sting
Translations
Every language
noun garden tool with a handle and a flat blade for digging
| Español | pala, azada |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 가래 garae |
| 日本語 | 鋤 suki, スペード supēdo |
| 中文 | 鏟 /铲 chǎn, 鏟子 /铲子 chǎnzi, 鍬 /锹 qiāo, 鐵鍬 /铁锹 tiěqiāo, 鐵杴 /铁杴 tiěxiān, 鍤 /锸 chā |
| हिन्दी | फावड़ा phāvṛā, फ़ावड़ा fāvṛā |
| Português | pá |
| Français | bêche, pelle |
| Deutsch | Spaten |
| Italiano | vanga, badile |
| Ελληνικά | φτυάρι ftyári |
| Română | lopată, cazma |
| Русский | штыкова́я лопа́та štykovája lopáta, лопа́та lopáta, за́ступ zástup |
| Tiếng Việt | xẻng, xuồng |
| العربية | مِجْرَفَة mijrafa, مِجْرَف mijraf, مِسْحَاة misḥāh |
| עברית | אֵת et |
Talk about this word "spade." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/spade. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. spade. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/spade "spade." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/spade.Cite this
@misc{spade_2026,
title = {spade},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/spade},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
