as in to stab
to penetrate or hold (something) with a pointed object
she speared a pea with her fork and angrily flung it
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of spear
Terry Ward, CNN Money, 20 Dec. 2025
Homemade potato chips come speared on a wooden skewer, perfect for pulling and snacking.
—Roger Naylor, AZCentral.com, 6 Dec. 2025
Greta Cross, USA Today, 18 Mar. 2026
Most importantly sharpening the tip of the spear — get the offensive line right.
—Los Angeles Times, 14 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for spear
Verb
The knife remains in the dominant hand, poised to cut when necessary or push food that can’t be speared atop the fork’s overturned tines.
—Terry Ward, CNN Money, 20 Dec. 2025
Homemade potato chips come speared on a wooden skewer, perfect for pulling and snacking.
—Roger Naylor, AZCentral.com, 6 Dec. 2025
Noun
Ukraine is the tip of the spear for the democratic embrace of dreams.
—Greta Cross, USA Today, 18 Mar. 2026
Most importantly sharpening the tip of the spear — get the offensive line right.
—Los Angeles Times, 14 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for spear
Recent Examples of Synonyms for spear
Verb
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The teen was involved in an argument when his adversary stabbed him multiple times with a knife, said police.—
Colin Mixson,
New York Daily News,
31 Mar. 2026
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Police allege the suspect then recklessly stabbed backward numerous times, striking the victim in the leg, according to Jaques.—
Justin Muszynski,
Hartford Courant,
30 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Look no further than shortstop Mookie Betts this week lauding the effects of throwing a javelin.—
Maddie Lee,
Los Angeles Times,
18 Mar. 2026
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Humans have been throwing javelins for a few hundred thousand years, yet performance has largely plateaued.—
R. Alexander Bentley,
The Conversation,
26 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The couple’s 3-year-old son was grazed in the back by the bullet that pierced Kaori’s skull, police and witnesses said.—
Emma Seiwell,
New York Daily News,
2 Apr. 2026
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This should result in a sharper edge that can pierce things like tomato skin more easily.—
Jesse Raub,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
30 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Powered from within, grass seedlings lance out roots and stems, beating any competition.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
25 Mar. 2026
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Their sizes range from 4 inches to 4 feet tall, and their heart- and lance-shaped leaves can be smooth, wavy, or variegated.—
Karen Brewer Grossman,
Southern Living,
26 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Wi-Fi 7's puncturing capability is designed to isolate the interference, enabling devices to use the remainder of the channel.—
Iyaz Akhtar,
PC Magazine,
31 Mar. 2026
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The attack had punctured an air of invulnerability created by the 1967 Six-Day War, in which Israel had swiftly captured the Golan Heights, the Sinai Peninsula, the West Bank, and Gaza from its Arab neighbors.—
Eyal Press,
New Yorker,
30 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The original stickers — the ones jabbing at Biden — started appearing in 2021.—
Frank Witsil,
Freep.com,
1 Apr. 2026
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Donald Trump‘s effort today to praise his new Homeland Security Secretary and defend him from Jimmy Kimmel‘s jabs kind of backfired.—
Dominic Patten,
Deadline,
26 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Your job is to pick and choose your way through the heap.—
Zachary Fine,
New Yorker,
31 Mar. 2026
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Boo and Scout were hand-picked for the Bidens by staff at the animal welfare group.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
30 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The astronauts will stick close to home for the first 25 hours of their 10-day test flight, checking out the capsule in orbit around Earth before firing the main engine that will propel them to the moon.—
Marcia Dunn,
Chicago Tribune,
2 Apr. 2026
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The average commuter spends 63 hours a year stuck in traffic.—
Jessica Guynn,
USA Today,
1 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Spear.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/spear. Accessed 5 Apr. 2026.
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