spawned; spawning; spawns
1
: to deposit or fertilize spawn
2
: to produce young especially in large numbers
1
a
: to produce or deposit (eggs)
—used of an aquatic animal
b
: to induce (fish) to spawn
c
: to plant with mushroom spawn
2
: bring forth, generate
the idea spawned controversy
spawner
noun
Synonyms
Examples of spawn in a Sentence
Verb
The health-food craze spawned a multimillion-dollar industry.
the incident that spawned a generation of student protests
a TV show that spawned a host of imitations
Noun
Pacific salmon return to Alaskan streams to deposit their spawn.
sometimes I think those little brats are the spawn of Satan himself
Recent Examples on the Web
Elizabeth Crisp, The Hill, 4 Nov. 2024
Eels Congregate To Breed In The Depths Of The Bermuda Triangle
The two most renowned eel species—the American and European eels—have now been seen migrating thousands of miles to spawn in the Sargasso Sea.
—Scott Travers, Forbes, 3 Nov. 2024
April Ehrlich, ProPublica, 12 Nov. 2024
Klamath Chairman William Ray said his tribe had fished the last salmon out of the river in the early 20th century after the first of the dams, Copco I, stopped fish from coming upstream to spawn.
—Debra Utacia Krol, USA TODAY, 5 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for spawn 
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Verb
Attendees were soon spotted at the event with their own white ear coverings in solidarity, spawning a wave of jokes on social media.
—Elizabeth Crisp, The Hill, 4 Nov. 2024
Eels Congregate To Breed In The Depths Of The Bermuda Triangle
The two most renowned eel species—the American and European eels—have now been seen migrating thousands of miles to spawn in the Sargasso Sea.
—Scott Travers, Forbes, 3 Nov. 2024
Noun
The logging will periodically cloud the waters of Yellow Creek, where threatened Oregon Coast coho salmon go to spawn.
—April Ehrlich, ProPublica, 12 Nov. 2024
Klamath Chairman William Ray said his tribe had fished the last salmon out of the river in the early 20th century after the first of the dams, Copco I, stopped fish from coming upstream to spawn.
—Debra Utacia Krol, USA TODAY, 5 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for spawn
Dictionary Entries Near spawn
Cite this Entry
“Spawn.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/spawn. Accessed 26 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
spawn
1 of 2 verb
ˈspȯn 
ˈspän
1
: to deposit or fertilize eggs
fish swimming upstream to spawn
2
: to produce young especially in large numbers
3
spawner
noun
spawn
2 of 2 noun1
: the eggs of aquatic animals (as fishes or oysters) that lay many small eggs
2
: product sense 2, offspring
also
: something produced in large quantities
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