spit

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“
Underneath the spit was a dripping pan to hold the falling juices and fat.

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Definitions (54)

Toggle American Heritage definitions American Heritage Dictionary (16)

  1. noun Saliva, especially when expectorated; spittle.
  2. noun The act of expectorating.
  3. noun Something, such as the frothy secretion of spittle bugs, that resembles spit.
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Toggle Century definitions Century Dictionary (24)

Toggle GNU Webster definitions GNU Webster's 1913 (6)

Toggle WordNet definitions WordNet (8)

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Examples (50)

  • Maybe he swallowed its maybe his spit was antimatter and it disintegrated. —  F ;SF; - vol 100 issue 02 - February 2001
  • Not even room for you caring folk who dare to pray for the dying, in this bastardly new leftist, PC world. * spit* —  Down under on the right side
  • She originally called a spit-up stain remover, but I think it would work for other stains as well: —  Biblical Womanhood
  • Design Patterns (* spit*) show up far more prevalently in Java than elsewhere.
  • It is only a few hundred yards wide, and the sea goes round at the back of the Rock, and along the other side of that spit--though you can't see it from here--so anything coming to attack it must advance along the spit, under the fire of the guns There, do you see that building, standing up on the hill above the town? —  Held Fast For England A Tale of the Siege of Gibraltar (1779-83)
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Allen's Allen's Synonyms and Antonyms

Used in the same context Used in the Same Context

saliva ·  spurt ·  hiss ·  fang ·  reef ·  ledge ·  phlegm ·  outcropping

Used in the same contextWord Family

spit:   Spat ·  spat ·  spitting ·  spits

Etymologies (8)

Toggle American Heritage etymologies American Heritage Dictionary (2)

  1. Middle English, from spitten, to spit, from Old English spittan, ultimately of imitative origin.
  2. Middle English, from Old English spitu.

Toggle Century etymologies Century Dictionary (6)

  1. (a) from (Middle English *spitte, spytte, spette, earlier spite, spyte, spete, from AS, spitu, a spit, = Middle Dutch spit, spet, speet, spete, Dutch spit = Middle Low German spit, Low German spitt = Old High German Middle High German spiz, German spiess (= Danish spid = Swedish spett, from Low German?), a roasting-spit, in G. also the branches of a deer's horn (hence Old French espoit, espoi, a spit, espois, French épois, a deer's horn, = Spanish Portuguese espeto, a spit, = Old Italian spito, spedo, a spit); orig. neuter of the adjective, Old High German spizzi, Middle High German spitze, spiz, German spitz, pointed (German spitze, a point). (b) Cf. Low German speet (properly *spiet), a spear, in humorous use a sword, = Old High German spioz, Middle High German spiez, German spiess, a spear, lance, pike, = Icelandic spjōt, a spear, = Swedish spjut = Danish spyd, a spear (hence Old French espiet, espet, espie, also espoit, espoi = Italian spiedo, spiede, a spear), (c) Cf. Icelandic spy¯ta, a spit, a wooden peg, from spjōt, a spear. The above forms have been partly confused with one another, (d) Cf. Welsh pid, a tapering point.
  2. from Middle English spitten, spyten, spitien = Middle Dutch spiten, speten, Dutch speten = Middle Low German Low German speten = Old High German spizzen, German spiessen = Danish spidde (cf. Spanish Portuguese espetar), spit, turn on a spit; from the noun.
  3. Under this form are merged several orig. different forms: (a) Early modern English and dial, also spet, from Middle English spitten, spytten (preterit spitte, spytte, sputte, sput), from Anglo-Saxon spittan, *spyttan (preterit *spytte) = German spützen = Swedish spotta = Danish spytte, spit; (b) late Middle High German sputzen, German speutzen = Icelandic spy¯ta, spit; (c) Middle English speten (preterit spette, spete, spetide), from Anglo-Saxon spǣtan (preterit spǣtte), spit. These forms are supposed to be connected with spew, but their relations are not clear. The similar forms, Middle Dutch spicken, also spugen, Middle Low German spigen, spiggen, German spucken, spit, are secondary forms of the verb cognate with Anglo-Saxon spīwan, English spew: see spew. Hence spattle, spittle, and prob. ult. spot.
  4. Early modern English and dial. also spet; from Middle English spyt; from spit, v.
  5. from Dutch spitten, dig: apparently connected with speten, spit: see spit.
  6. English dial.; cf. spit, v.
 

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