SPADE

n. & v. --n. 1 a tool used for digging or cutting the ground etc., with a sharp-edged metal blade and a long handle. 2 a tool of a similar shape for various purposes, e.g. for removing the blubber from a whale. 3 anything resembling a spade. --v.tr. dig over (ground) with a spade. øcall a spade a spade speak plainly or bluntly. spade beard an oblong-shaped beard. spade foot a square spadelike enlargement at the end of a chair-leg. øøspadeful n. (pl. -fuls). [OE spadu, spada]