spud

noun

Informal. a potato.

a spadelike instrument, especially one with a narrow blade, as for digging up or cutting the roots of weeds.

a chisellike tool for removing bark.

a pointed leg or stake for staying or supporting dredging or earth-boring machinery.

a short pipe, as for connecting a water pipe with a meter.

Surgery. an instrument having a dull flattened blade for removing substances or foreign bodies from certain parts of the body, as wax from the ear.

Relevant Questions

How Tall Was Spud Webb?

verb (used with object)

to remove with a spud.

00:10

Spud is one of our favorite verbs.

So is peculate. Does it mean:

to introduce subtleties into or argue subtly about.

to steal or take dishonestly (money, esp. public funds, or property entrusted to one's care); embezzle.

LEARN MORE FUN, UNUSUAL VERBS WITH WORD DYNAMO...

Verb phrases

spud in, to set up earth-boring equipment, especially for drilling an oil well.

Origin:
1400–50; late Middle English spudde short knife < ?

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To spud

Collins

World English Dictionary

spud (spʌd)

—n
1.	an informal word for potato
2.	a narrow-bladed spade for cutting roots, digging up weeds, etc
3.	Also called: spudder a tool, resembling a chisel, for removing bark from trees

—vb , spuds, spudding, spudded
4.	(tr) to remove (bark) or eradicate (weeds) with a spud
5.	(intr) to drill the first foot of an oil-well

[C15 spudde short knife, of unknown origin; applied later to a digging tool, and hence to a potato]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline

Word Origin & History

spud

c.1440 "small or poor knife," of uncertain origin probably related to Dan. spyd, O.N. spjot "spear," Ger. Spiess "spear, lance"). Meaning "spade" is from 1667; sense of "short or stumpy person or thing" is from 1687; that of "potato" is first recorded 1845 in New Zealand English.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage

Medical Dictionary

spud (spŭd)
n.
A blunt triangular knife used for removing foreign bodies from the cornea.

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

spud definition

[spəd]

n.
a potato. : Mashed spuds are the best of all.
n.
vodka. (Presumed to be made from potatoes.) : She keeps a big jug of spud in the reefer and drinks it like water.
n.
a vodka drunkard. : That silly spud thinks we can't smell what's on her breath.
n.
a short person. (Also a term of address.) : He can jump pretty high for a spud.

Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Example sentences

Check ice depth with your ice spud on every step for thin spots.

Spud brackets are similar to pile hoops, allowing the bridge to move up and

down on the spud.

Carry a spud bar to check the ice while walking to new areas during daylight

only.

The effective date of the change will be the date the new well is spud.

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Related Words

spudder

Spud Island

Slang

sofa spud

Matching Quote

"Rub a half potato on your wart
and wrap it in a damp cloth. Close
your eyes and whirl three times and throw.
Then bury rag and spud exactly where they fall."

-Richard Hugo