dispense

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dispense

distribute in portions or parts; administer; release or exempt

Not to be confused with:

disburse – pay out; spend

disperse – scatter; dissipate; spray; dispel

dis·pense

(dĭ-spĕns′)

v. dis·pensed, dis·pens·ing, dis·pens·es

v.tr.

a. To give or deal out, especially in parts or portions: a machine that dispenses candy; a neighbor who freely dispenses advice. See Synonyms at distribute.

b. To prepare and give out (medicines).

2. To administer (laws, for example).

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

v.intr.

To grant a dispensation or exemption.

Phrasal Verb:

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.]

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

dispense

(dɪˈspɛns)

1. (tr) to give out or issue in portions

2. (Pharmacology) (tr) to prepare and distribute (medicine), esp on prescription

3. (Law) (tr) to administer (the law, etc)

4. (foll by: with) to do away (with) or manage (without)

5. (Roman Catholic Church) to grant a dispensation to (someone) from some obligation of church law

6. to exempt or excuse from a rule or obligation

[C14: from Medieval Latin dispensāre to pardon, from Latin dispendere to weigh out, from dis-¹ + pendere to weigh]

Usage: Dispense with is sometimes wrongly used where dispose of is meant: this task can be disposed of (not dispensed with) quickly and easily

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

dis•pense

(dɪˈspɛns)

v. -pensed, -pens•ing,
n. v.t.

1. to deal out; distribute.

2. to administer: to dispense the law without bias.

3. to make up and distribute (medicine), esp. on prescription.

4. Rom. Cath. Ch. to grant a dispensation to.

v.i.

5. to grant dispensation.

6. dispense with,

a. to do without.

b. to get rid of.

7. Obs. expenditure.

[1275–1325; Middle English < Medieval Latin dispēnsāre to pardon, exempt, Latin: to pay out, distribute =dis- dis-¹ + pēnsāre, frequentative of pendere to weigh]

dispense

- Ultimately from Latin dispendere, "weigh out."

dispense

Past participle: dispensed
Gerund: dispensing

Imperative
dispense
dispense

Present
I dispense
you dispense
he/she/it dispenses
we dispense
you dispense
they dispense

Preterite
I dispensed
you dispensed
he/she/it dispensed
we dispensed
you dispensed
they dispensed

Present Continuous
I am dispensing
you are dispensing
he/she/it is dispensing
we are dispensing
you are dispensing
they are dispensing

Present Perfect
I have dispensed
you have dispensed
he/she/it has dispensed
we have dispensed
you have dispensed
they have dispensed

Past Continuous
I was dispensing
you were dispensing
he/she/it was dispensing
we were dispensing
you were dispensing
they were dispensing

Past Perfect
I had dispensed
you had dispensed
he/she/it had dispensed
we had dispensed
you had dispensed
they had dispensed

Future
I will dispense
you will dispense
he/she/it will dispense
we will dispense
you will dispense
they will dispense

Future Perfect
I will have dispensed
you will have dispensed
he/she/it will have dispensed
we will have dispensed
you will have dispensed
they will have dispensed

Future Continuous
I will be dispensing
you will be dispensing
he/she/it will be dispensing
we will be dispensing
you will be dispensing
they will be dispensing

Present Perfect Continuous
I have been dispensing
you have been dispensing
he/she/it has been dispensing
we have been dispensing
you have been dispensing
they have been dispensing

Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been dispensing
you will have been dispensing
he/she/it will have been dispensing
we will have been dispensing
you will have been dispensing
they will have been dispensing

Past Perfect Continuous
I had been dispensing
you had been dispensing
he/she/it had been dispensing
we had been dispensing
you had been dispensing
they had been dispensing

Conditional
I would dispense
you would dispense
he/she/it would dispense
we would dispense
you would dispense
they would dispense

Past Conditional
I would have dispensed
you would have dispensed
he/she/it would have dispensed
we would have dispensed
you would have dispensed
they would have dispensed

Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Switch to new thesaurus

Verb	1.	dispense - administer or bestow, as in small portions; "administer critical remarks to everyone present"; "dole out some money"; "shell out pocket money for the children"; "deal a blow to someone"; "the machine dispenses soft drinks" deal out, dish out, distribute, dole out, mete out, parcel out, shell out, lot, administer, allot, deal give - transfer possession of something concrete or abstract to somebody; "I gave her my money"; "can you give me lessons?"; "She gave the children lots of love and tender loving care" allot, portion, assign - give out; "We were assigned new uniforms" reallot - allot again; "They were realloted additional farm land" deal - distribute cards to the players in a game; "Who's dealing?" apply, give - give or convey physically; "She gave him First Aid"; "I gave him a punch in the nose"
	2.	dispense - grant a dispensation; grant an exemption; "I was dispensed from this terrible task" exempt, relieve, free - grant relief or an exemption from a rule or requirement to; "She exempted me from the exam" foreswear, forgo, waive, relinquish, dispense with, forego - do without or cease to hold or adhere to; "We are dispensing with formalities"; "relinquish the old ideas"
	3.	dispense - give or apply (medications) administer practice of medicine, medicine - the learned profession that is mastered by graduate training in a medical school and that is devoted to preventing or alleviating or curing diseases and injuries; "he studied medicine at Harvard" care for, treat - provide treatment for; "The doctor treated my broken leg"; "The nurses cared for the bomb victims"; "The patient must be treated right away or she will die"; "Treat the infection with antibiotics" transfuse - give a transfusion (e.g., of blood) to digitalize - administer digitalis such that the patient benefits maximally without getting adverse effects inject, shoot - give an injection to; "We injected the glucose into the patient's vein" give - give (as medicine); "I gave him the drug"

dispense

verb

1. distribute, assign, allocate, allot, mete out, dole out, share out, apportion, deal out, disburse They had already dispensed £40,000 in grants.

2. prepare, measure, supply, mix a store licensed to dispense prescriptions

3. administer, direct, operate, carry out, implement, undertake, enforce, execute, apply, discharge High Court judges dispensing justice round the country

4. exempt, except, excuse, release, relieve, reprieve, let off (informal), exonerate No-one is dispensed from collaborating in this task.

dispense with something or someone

1. do away with, ignore, give up, cancel, abolish, omit, disregard, pass over, brush aside, forgo, render needless We'll dispense with formalities.

2. do without, get rid of, dispose of, relinquish, shake off Up at the lectern he dispensed with his notes.

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

dispense

verb

1. To give out in portions or shares:

deal (out), distribute, divide, dole out, parcel out, portion (out), ration (out), share.

Slang: divvy.

2. To provide as a remedy:

administer, apply, give.

3. To oversee the provision or execution of:

administer, administrate, carry out, execute.

4. To free from an obligation or duty:

absolve, discharge, excuse, exempt, let off, relieve, spare.

Translations

يُرَكِّبُ أدْوِيَهيُعْطي، يُوَزِّع

připravit k vydánírozdělovat

tildeleudlevere

austeilen zubereiten

dispenser préparer

afgreiîaúthluta

distribuire elargire esenzione fare a meno farmacista

apsieiti begamintiišskirstytipagamintivaistų išdavimo punktas

izsniegt

forberede til utdeling

dağıtmakhazırlayıp vermekvermek

分发配药

dispense

[dɪsˈpens] VT

1. (= distribute) [+ food, money] → repartir; [+ advice] → ofrecer; [+ drug, prescription] → despachar
this machine dispenses coffee → esta máquina expende café

2. (= implement) [+ justice] → administrar

3. (= exempt) to dispense sb from sth → dispensar or eximir a algn de algo

dispense with VI + PREP

1. (= do without) → prescindir de

2. (= get rid of) → deshacerse de

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

dispense

[dɪˈspɛns] vt

[person, system, organization] [+ justice] → exercer; [+ information] → distribuer, fournir; [+ advice] → prodiguer, donner

[machine] [+ goods, money] → distribuer

[pharmacist] [+ medicine] → préparer

(= exempt) to dispense sb from → dispenser qn de

dispense with

vt fus

(= do without) [+ person, thing, advice, knowledge] → se passer de

(= get rid of) [+ thing, person] → se débarrasser de

dispense

→ verteilen, austeilen (→ to an +acc); advice → erteilen; (machine) product, money → ausgeben; to dispense justice → Recht sprechen

(Pharm) medicine → abgeben; prescription → zubereiten

(form, = exempt) → dispensieren, befreien; to dispense somebody from doing something → jdn davon befreien or dispensieren, etw zu tun

vi (Pharm) → Medizin abgeben, dispensieren (form)

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

dispense

[dɪsˈpɛns] vt (food, money) → dispensare, distribuire; (justice) → amministrare; (medicine) → preparare e dare
to dispense prescriptions → preparare e dare medicine su ricetta

dispense with vt + prep (do without) → fare a meno di

dispense

(diˈspens) verb

1. to give or deal out.

2. to prepare (medicines, especially prescriptions) for giving out.

diˈspensary – plural diˈspensaries – noun

a place especially in a hospital where medicines are given out.

diˈspenser noun

dispense with

to get rid of or do without. We could economize by dispensing with two assistants.

dis·pense

vt. dispensar; distribuir.

dispense

vt (pharm) dispensar

References in classic literature ?

"That is all very well," said one of the older foxes; "but I do not think you would have recommended us to dispense with our chief ornament if you had not happened to lose it yourself."

View in context

"My children," said the Oldest and Wisest Ape in All the World, when he had heard the Deputation, "you did right in ridding yourselves of tyranny, but your tribe is not sufficiently advanced to dispense with the forms of monarchy.

View in context

whose aromatic gales dispense To Templars modesty, to Parsons sense.

whose dictatorial looks dispense To Children affluence, to Rushworth sense.

View in context

These recognitions alone dispense with the artificial aid of tokens or amulets.

View in context

Nell thought that she could sometimes dispense with her own appetite very conveniently; and thought, moreover, that there was nothing either in the lady's personal appearance or in her manner of taking tea, to lead to the conclusion that her natural relish for meat and drink had at all failed her.

View in context

If the federal government can command the aid of the militia in those emergencies which call for the military arm in support of the civil magistrate, it can the better dispense with the employment of a different kind of force.

View in context

In some States the Specimens are occasionally fed and suffered to exist for several years; but in the more temperate and better regulated regions, it is found in the long run more advantageous for the educational interests of the young, to dispense with food, and to renew the Specimens every month -- which is about the average duration of the foodless existence of the Criminal class.

View in context

And, in the second place, we all overlooked the fact that such mechanical intelligence as the Martian possessed was quite able to dispense with muscular exertion at a pinch.

View in context

Modern education includes morality; therefore the modern child seeks only entertainment in its wonder tales and gladly dispenses with all disagreeable incident.

View in context

I say, that the motion of a Sperm Whale's flukes above water dispenses a perfume, as when a musk-scented lady rustles her dress in a warm parlor.

View in context

Also designed to dispense a continuous, uniform bead with 0.1ml accuracy, the EZ-mix Variable Ration Meter-Mix Dispense System eliminates interruption from refilling.