Standard Lemma guide

spurt

noun · verb · 12 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • spûrt
  • Received-Pronunciation: /spɜːt/
  • General-American: /spɜɹt/
  • Australia: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • rhymes with -ɜː(ɹ)t
  • CMU ARPABET: S P ER1 T Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

A brief gush, as of liquid spurting from an orifice or a cut/wound.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • a spurt of water; a spurt of blood

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

Ejaculation of semen.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: slang

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

A shoot; a bud.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: obsolete

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

noun

Meaning 4

A moment, a short period of time.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: instant, jiffy, bat of an eye, bit, blink of an eye, crack, eyeblink, flash, glimpse, half a mo, jiff, jot, minute, mo, moment, New York minute, New York second, no time, sec, second, span, split-second, spurt, stound, tick, trice, twink, twinkle, twinkling, while

Antonyms: none provided

5

noun

Meaning 5

A sudden brief burst of, or increase in, speed, effort, activity, emotion or development.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • The boss's visit prompted a brief spurt of activity.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

6

noun

Meaning 6

The act of spurting, or something spurted

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

7

verb

Meaning 7

To cause to gush out suddenly or violently in a stream or jet.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: transitive

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

8

verb

Meaning 8

To rush from a confined place in a small stream or jet.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: intransitive

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

9

verb

Meaning 9

To make a strong effort for a short period of time.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: intransitive

Examples

  • The bullion market spurted on Thursday.
  • The runners spurted to the last lap as if they had extracted new energy from the applauds of the audience.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

10

noun

Meaning 10

the occurrence of a sudden discharge (as of liquid)

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: jet, squirt, spirt

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: discharge, outpouring, run

Narrower terms: spray, spritz

11

verb

Meaning 11

move or act with a sudden increase in speed or energy

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: forge, spirt

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: travel, go, move, locomote

12

verb

Meaning 12

gush forth in a sudden stream or jet

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • water gushed forth

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: spirt, gush, spout

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: pour

Narrower terms: pump, blow, whoosh

History

Etymology

From earlier spirt, sprit (“to sprout”), from Middle English sprytten, from Old English spryttan, from Proto-West Germanic *spruttjan, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *(s)per- (“to strew, sow, sprinkle”).

Uncertain. May be derived from Etymology 1.

Across languages

Translations

105 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Bulgarian: изблик (izblik) — brief gush
  • Bulgarian: силна струя (silna struja) — brief gush
  • Catalan: raig — brief gush
  • Chinese Mandarin: 噴射 /喷射 (pēnshè) — brief gush
  • Dutch: losbarsting — brief gush
  • Dutch: opwelling — brief gush
  • Dutch: sprint — brief gush
  • Finnish: purskahdus — brief gush
  • Finnish: purskaus — brief gush
  • German: Spritzer — brief gush
  • German: Strahl — brief gush
  • Hebrew: שפריץ (shpritz) — brief gush
  • Japanese: 噴射 (funsha) — brief gush
  • Māori: puahiritanga — brief gush
  • Old English: ætspringan — brief gush
  • Romanian: țâșnitură — brief gush
  • Russian: пото́к (potók) — brief gush
  • Russian: струя́ (strujá) — brief gush
  • Spanish: chirguete — brief gush
  • Spanish: chiguete — brief gush
  • Spanish: chorrete — brief gush
  • Bulgarian: порив (poriv) — a sudden brief rise in activity, etc.
  • Finnish: pyrähdys — a sudden brief rise in activity, etc.
  • Finnish: rupeama — a sudden brief rise in activity, etc.
  • Finnish: spurtti — a sudden brief rise in activity, etc.
  • German: Spurt — a sudden brief rise in activity, etc.
  • German: Ausbruch — a sudden brief rise in activity, etc.
  • Swedish: spurt — a sudden brief rise in activity, etc.
  • Catalan: adollar — to cause to gush
  • Chinese Mandarin: 噴出 /喷出 (pēnchū) — to cause to gush
  • Chinese Mandarin: 噴 /喷 (pēn) — to cause to gush
  • Finnish: purskauttaa — to cause to gush
  • Finnish: purskuttaa — to cause to gush
  • Hungarian: spriccel — to cause to gush
  • Japanese: 噴き出す (fukidasu) — to cause to gush
  • Japanese: 噴く (fuku) — to cause to gush
  • Korean: 내뿜다 (naeppumda) — to cause to gush
  • Korean: 분출하다 (bunchulhada) — to cause to gush
  • Māori: korowhiwhi — to cause to gush
  • Russian: бры́згать (brýzgatʹ) — to cause to gush
  • Russian: выбра́сывать (vybrásyvatʹ) — to cause to gush
  • Russian: вы́бросить (výbrositʹ) — to cause to gush
  • Spanish: chorretear — to cause to gush
  • Swedish: spruta — to cause to gush
  • Walloon: spiter — to cause to gush
  • Bulgarian: бликвам (blikvam) — to gush
  • Bulgarian: шурвам (šurvam) — to gush
  • Catalan: rajar — to gush
  • Catalan: dollejar — to gush
  • Chinese Mandarin: 噴放 /喷放 (pēnfàng) — to gush
  • Chinese Mandarin: 噴 /喷 (pēn) — to gush
  • Chinese Mandarin: 迸 (bèng) — to gush
  • Chinese Mandarin: 迸射 (bèngshè) — to gush
  • Chinese Mandarin: 噴發 /喷发 (pēnfā) — to gush
  • Chinese Mandarin: 噴出 /喷出 (pēnchū) — to gush
  • Chinese Mandarin: 噴薄 /喷薄 (pēnbó) — to gush
  • Finnish: purskahtaa — to gush
  • Finnish: purskua — to gush
  • French: gicler — to gush
  • German: spritzen — to gush
  • German: zischen — to gush
  • German: schießen — to gush
  • Greek: αναβλύζω (anavlýzo) — to gush
  • Hebrew: קָלַח (qalákh) — to gush
  • Japanese: 迸る — to gush
  • Japanese: 噴出する (funshutsu suru) — to gush
  • Japanese: 噴き出す (fukidasu) — to gush
  • Korean: 솟구치다 (sotguchida) — to gush
  • Māori: paratī — to gush
  • Māori: kotī — to gush
  • Māori: torohīhī — to gush
  • Māori: torohī — to gush
  • Māori: korohihī — to gush
  • Polish: bryzgać — to gush
  • Polish: bluzgać — to gush
  • Polish: bluznąć — to gush
  • Romanian: stropi — to gush
  • Romanian: țâșni — to gush
  • Russian: бры́згать (brýzgatʹ) — to gush
  • Russian: бить струёй (bitʹ strujój) — to gush
  • Russian: заби́ть струёй (zabítʹ strujój) — to gush
  • Russian: выбра́сывать струёй (vybrásyvatʹ strujój) — to gush
  • Russian: вы́бросить струёй (výbrositʹ strujój) — to gush
  • Russian: хлы́нуть (xlýnutʹ) — to gush
  • Russian: струи́ться (struítʹsja) — to gush
  • Swedish: spruta — to gush
  • Bulgarian: бъхтя се (bǎhtja se) — to make strong effort
  • Bulgarian: напъвам се (napǎvam se) — to make strong effort
  • Bulgarian: напъна се (napǎna se) — to make strong effort
  • Bulgarian: давам си зор (davam si zor) — to make strong effort
  • Bulgarian: дада си зор (dada si zor) — to make strong effort
  • Dutch: sprinten — to make strong effort
  • Faroese: spurta — to make strong effort
  • Finnish: rynnistää — to make strong effort
  • Finnish: kiriä — to make strong effort
  • German: spurten — to make strong effort
  • German: sprinten — to make strong effort
  • German: sich sputen — to make strong effort
  • Latin: nītor — to make strong effort
  • Latin: tendō — to make strong effort
  • Romanian: se sforța — to make strong effort
  • Russian: де́лать рыво́к (délatʹ ryvók) — to make strong effort
  • Russian: сде́лать рыво́к (sdélatʹ ryvók) — to make strong effort
  • Russian: рвану́ть (rvanútʹ) — to make strong effort
  • Swedish: spurta — to make strong effort