Meaning & use
spout
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Meanings
verbtransitive or intransitive
To shoot out liquid or gas in a strong, fast stream.
Grammar: Can be used with an object (the whale spouted water) or without (water spouted from the pipe).
Patterns
- spout from something
- spout something
Water spouted from the burst pipe and flooded the hall.
The fountain spouts water thirty feet into the air.
A whale surfaced and spouted just beside the boat.
verbtransitive or intransitiveinformaldisapproving
To talk at length in a confident or boring way about something, often repeating the same opinions.
Grammar: Often used to criticize; it can take an object (spout nonsense) or 'about' (spout about politics).
Patterns
- spout about something
- spout something
He spent the dinner spouting about his new business idea.
Politicians spout the same slogans at every election.
Stop spouting nonsense and listen to the facts.
nouncountable
A tube, lip or opening on a container through which liquid pours out.
Grammar: Found on kettles, teapots and jugs: the spout of the kettle.
Patterns
- the spout of something
- a spout on something
Hold the jug by the handle and aim the spout at the cup.
Tea dribbled from the spout of the old pot.
A small plastic spout fits onto the juice carton.
nouncountable
A strong jet of liquid or gas that shoots out, such as the spray from a whale's blowhole.
Grammar: Often followed by 'of' and the liquid: a spout of water.
Patterns
- a spout of something
A spout of water rose from the whale's back.
A spout of steam shot out of the machine.
Oil came up in a black spout when the drill struck.
Word forms
| third person singular | spouts |
|---|---|
| past tense | spouted |
| past participle | spouted |
| -ing form | spouting |
| plural | spouts |
Common combinations
- spout water
- The statue spouts water from its mouth.
- spout nonsense
- He is always spouting nonsense about conspiracies.
- spout off
- Some people spout off about topics they know little about.
- teapot spout
- A tea leaf clogged the teapot spout.
- spout opinions
- Commentators spout opinions on every news story.
- up the spout
- Our holiday plans have gone up the spout.
Synonyms and how they differ
- gush
- Gush means to flow out in a large, fast and often uncontrolled amount, while spout suggests a narrower, more directed jet.
- spurt
- Spurt describes a sudden short burst of liquid, whereas spout can be a longer continuous stream.
- rant
- To rant is to speak loudly and angrily, while to spout is usually calmer and more confident but equally tiresome.
- pontificate
- Pontificate is a more formal verb for speaking in a self-important manner, with a stronger flavor of looking down on listeners.
Opposites
Word family
- spouting noun
- the act of sending out a stream, or in British English the gutters on a roof
- spouter noun
- someone who talks at length, often pompously
- spouted adjective
- having a spout, as in a spouted jug
- waterspout noun
- a whirling column of water and cloud over the sea
Commonly confused: spout or sprout?
spout vs sprout
To sprout is to start to grow (seeds sprout), while to spout is to shoot out liquid or to talk at length.
Practice
Which sentence uses spout in its 'talk at length' sense?
Choose one answer.
Only the second sentence is about talking, usually in a critical way. The others describe liquid or steam shooting out, or the pouring tube itself.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “spout”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.