spoon

UK: /ˈspuːn/ US: /spun/ ,(spo̅o̅n)

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025

spoon /spun/   n. [countable]

1. an object used in eating, stirring, measuring, etc., made up of a small, shallow bowl with a handle:
   She picked up a spoon and stirred her tea.
2. an object or part resembling or suggesting this.
3. a spoonful:
   I'll take two spoons of sugar with my tea, please.

v. [~ + object]

4. to eat with a spoon:
   He spooned some ice cream into his mouth.

Idioms

5. Idioms born with a silver spoon in one's mouth, born wealthy.

spoon•ful, n. [countable] , pl. -fuls. 

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025

spoon  (spo̅o̅n), n. 

1. a utensil for use in eating, stirring, measuring, ladling, etc., consisting of a small, shallow bowl with a handle.
2. any of various implements, objects, or parts resembling or suggesting this.
3. a spoonful.
4. Sport Also called spoon′ bait′. [Angling.] a lure used in casting or trolling for fish, consisting of a bright spoon-shaped piece of metal or the like, swiveled above one or more fishhooks, and revolving as it is drawn through the water.
5. Sport Also called number three wood. [Golf.] a club with a wooden head whose face has a greater slope than the brassie or driver, for hitting long, high drives from the fairway.
6. Military a curved piece projecting from the top of a torpedo tube to guide the torpedo horizontally and prevent it from striking the side of the ship from which it was fired.
7. born with a silver spoon in one's mouth, born into a wealthy family;
   having an inherited fortune:
   She was born with a silver spoon in her mouth and never worked a day in her life.

v.t. 

8. to eat with, take up, or transfer in or as in a spoon.
9. to hollow out or shape like a spoon.
10. Sport [Games.]
    • to push or shove (a ball) with a lifting motion instead of striking it soundly, as in croquet or golf.
    • to hit (a ball) up in the air, as in cricket.
11. Informal Terms to show affection or love toward by kissing and caressing, esp. in an openly sentimental manner.

v.i. 

12. Informal Terms to show affection or love by kissing and caressing, esp. in an openly sentimental manner.
13. Sport [Games.] to spoon a ball.
14. Sport [Angling.] to fish with a spoon.

• bef. 900; Middle English; Old English spōn; cognate with Low German spon, German Span chip, Old Norse spōnn; akin to Greek sphé̄n wedge

spoon′less, adj. 
spoon′like′, adj. 

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

spoon / spuːn/ noun

1. a metal, wooden, or plastic utensil having a shallow concave part, usually elliptical in shape, attached to a handle, used in eating or serving food, stirring, etc
2. Also called: spoonbait an angling lure for spinning or trolling, consisting of a bright piece of metal which swivels on a trace to which are attached a hook or hooks
3. a former name for a No. 3 wood
4. wooden spoon ⇒
   another name for booby prize
5. a type of oar blade that is curved at the edges and tip to gain a firm grip on the water
6. be born with a silver spoon in one's mouth ⇒ to inherit wealth or social standing

verb

1. (transitive) to scoop up or transfer (food, liquid, etc) from one container to another with or as if with a spoon
2. (intransitive) to kiss and cuddle
3. to hit (a ball) with a weak lifting motion, as in golf, cricket, etc

Etymology: Old English spōn splinter; related to Old Norse spōnn spoon, chip, Old High German spān