spongier; spongiest
1
: resembling a sponge:
a
: soft and full of cavities
spongy ice
b
: elastic, porous, and absorbent
2
a
: not firm or solid
b
: being in the form of a metallic sponge
spongy iron
3
: moist and soft like a sponge full of water
a spongy moor
sponginess noun

Examples of spongy in a Sentence

spongy moss covered the ground generously pour the brandy over the cake, which is so spongy that it will absorb most of the liquid
Recent Examples on the Web The middle is like a different bread entirely, soft and slightly spongy. Jenn Harris, Los Angeles Times, 12 Feb. 2024 As anyone with an iPhone can attest, even a much shorter drop can be fatal for the phones when the target is a concrete sidewalk, but with spongy grass serving as a shock absorber, the iPhone (apparently) just didn’t pick up enough speed to be smashed to smithereens. Sam Dean, Los Angeles Times, 9 Jan. 2024 Unlike long bones, but like flat bones and irregular bones, short bones are primarily spongy, though they are also covered in a thin coating of compact bone. Sam Walters, Discover Magazine, 3 Nov. 2023 The city of the future may be spongier in ways that are obviously verdant or more subtle. WIRED, 29 Sep. 2023 Almas caviar comes only from an albino beluga sturgeon that is over 100 years old, as older sturgeons have a spongier texture than younger fish, according to EHL Insights. Josie Goodrich, USA TODAY, 7 July 2023 Step 1: Make the Stave Because green wood is too spongy to launch a fast arrow and dead wood breaks when bent, the ideal stave for a self bow is carefully seasoned. Keith McCafferty, Field & Stream, 29 June 2023 When the prion was injected into the brains of mice, the brains became spongy and riddled with holes, the telltale signs of prion disease. Amber Angelle, Discover Magazine, 3 Oct. 2010 Oregon dedicates its new stadium, Hayward Field, and then wins 9-0 on the new damp, spongy turf in front of a capacity crowd of 9,000. oregonlive, 23 Nov. 2021

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'spongy.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of spongy was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near spongy

Cite this Entry

“Spongy.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/spongy. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

spongy

adjective
spongier; spongiest
: resembling a sponge in appearance or in ability to absorb : soft and full of holes or moisture
sponginess noun

Medical Definition

spongy

adjective
spongier; spongiest
: resembling a sponge
especially : full of cavities : cancellous
spongy bone
sponginess noun

More from Merriam-Webster on spongy

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