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Added 9 October 2026

spade

/speɪ̯d/ noun

In Latin: rutrum, pāla Wiktionary

noun Definition from WordNet 3.1, Princeton University. Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about spade at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

A playing card in the major suit that has one or more black figures on it.
she led a low spade
A sturdy hand shovel that can be pushed into the earth with the foot.

verb

Dig (up) with a spade.
I spade compost into the flower beds

Origin

From Middle English spade, from Old English spada, spade, spadu (“spade”), from Proto-Germanic *spadô. Doublet of spatha, spathe, and épée.

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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