Meaning & use
spaying
Last updated
“spaying” is a form of “spay”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meanings
verbtransitive
Present participle of 'spay': performing a surgical operation to remove the ovaries of a female animal so she cannot have babies.
Grammar: Used after 'be' to make the continuous passive or active: 'The cat is being spayed today.'
Patterns
- be spaying an animal
- spaying a cat/dog
The vet is spaying the female dog this morning.
They are spaying the rabbits before putting them together.
She was spaying a cat when the phone rang.
noununcountable
The operation of removing the ovaries of a female animal so that she cannot become pregnant.
Grammar: Used as a noun without 'a' or 'an': 'Spaying is recommended.'
Patterns
- spaying of an animal
- recommend spaying
Spaying helps prevent certain cancers in female dogs.
The clinic offers low-cost spaying for cats.
After spaying, the animal needs a few days to rest.
Word forms
| third person singular | spays |
|---|---|
| past tense | spayed |
| past participle | spayed |
| -ing form | spaying |
Common combinations
- spaying and neutering
- Many shelters encourage spaying and neutering to control the pet population.
- low-cost spaying
- The animal charity provides low-cost spaying for people on low incomes.
- spaying clinic
- The mobile spaying clinic visits rural areas every month.
- recommend spaying
- Vets often recommend spaying before the first heat.
Synonyms and how they differ
- neutering
- This is the general term for removing the sex organs of either male or female animals; 'spaying' is only for females.
- sterilizing
- A broader word meaning making an animal unable to reproduce, which can include other methods; 'spaying' is a specific surgical operation.
Word family
Commonly confused: spaying or spay?
spaying vs spay
This is the base verb or the operation itself; 'spaying' is the -ing form or the name of the process.
Practice
The vet is ___ the female cat tomorrow.
Choose one answer.
After 'is' and before the object, we need the -ing form 'spaying' to make the present continuous. 'Spay' is the base form and cannot follow 'is' here; 'spays' is third-person singular and would need a different subject; 'spayed' would make a passive, but the cat is the object, not the subject.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “spaying”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.