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dispense

 - 5 dictionary results

dis⋅pense

  [di-spens] verb, -pensed, -pens⋅ing, noun
Use dispense in a Sentence
–verb (used with object)
1. to deal out; distribute: to dispense wisdom.
2. to administer: to dispense the law without bias.
3. Pharmacology. to make up and distribute (medicine), esp. on prescription.
4. Roman Catholic Church. to grant dispensation.
–verb (used without object)
5. to grant dispensation.
–noun
6. Obsolete. expenditure.
—Verb phrase
7. dispense with,
a. to do without; forgo: to dispense with preliminaries.
b. to do away with; rid of.
c. to grant exemption from a law or promise.
Origin:
1275–1325; ME dispensen < ML dispēnsāre to pardon, exempt, L: to pay out, distribute, equiv. to dis- dis- 1 + pēnsāre, freq. of pendere to weigh

Synonyms:
1. apportion, allot, dole. See distribute.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To dispense
dis·pense   (dĭ-spěns')   
v.   dis·pensed, dis·pens·ing, dis·pens·es

v.   tr.

  1. To deal out in parts or portions; distribute. See Synonyms at distribute.

  2. To prepare and give out (medicines).

  3. To administer (laws, for example).

  4. To exempt or release, as from a duty or religious obligation.

v.   intr.
To grant a dispensation or exemption.
Phrasal Verb(s):
dispense with

  1. To manage without; forgo: Let's dispense with the formalities.

  2. To get rid of; do away with: a country that has dispensed with tariff barriers.


[Middle English dispensen, from Old French dispenser, from Latin dispēnsāre, to distribute, frequentative of dispendere, to weigh out : dis-, out; see dis- + pendere, to weigh; see (s)pen- in Indo-European roots.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

dispense 
c.1320, from O.Fr. dispenser "give out," from L. dispensare "disburse, administer, distribute (by weight)," freq. of dispendere "pay out," from dis- "out" + pendere "to pay, weigh" (see pendant). In M.L., dispendere was used in the ecclesiastical sense of "grant license to do what is forbidden or omit what is required" (a power of popes, bishops, etc.), and thus acquired a sense of "grant remission from punishment or exemption from law," which led to the Mod.Eng. meaning. Older sense is preserved in dispensary (1699) "place for weighing out medicines," Theological sense is from being used to translate Gk. oikonomoia "office, method of administration." Dispensation is from c.1374.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: dis·pense
Pronunciation: dis-'pen(t)s
Function: transitive verb
Inflected Forms: dis·pensed; dis·pens·ing
1 : to put up (a prescription or medicine)
2 : to prepare and distribute (medication)
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

dispense dis·pense (dĭ-spěns')
v. dis·pensed, dis·pens·ing, dis·pens·es
To prepare and give out medicines.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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