Meaning & use

spanner

noun·Everyday

A hand tool with a shaped opening used to grip and turn nuts or bolts (called a wrench in American English).

See it in a sentence

He grabbed a spanner from the toolbox to tighten the loose bolt on the bike.

The mechanic kept a full set of spanners neatly arranged on the wall.

A note on using this word

Spanner is standard British English, while Americans almost always say wrench for the same tool.

Words with a similar meaning

Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “spanner”, then compare your use with the examples above.

Your draft stays on this page and is not sent anywhere.