Spilt or Spilled | Definition, Explanation & Examples
The simple past tense form and past participle of the verb spill can cause some confusion. And the answer to “Is it spilt or spilled?” is “It depends where you are.”
American English has the easiest answer: you won’t go wrong if you choose spilled. British English is more complicated. Not every authority agrees, but generally, spilled is the simple past form, and spilt is the past participle.
| American English | British English |
|---|---|
| The crowd was so large that it spilled out into the street. | The crowd was so large that it spilled out into the street. |
| It was too late; Michael had spilled the beans! | It was too late; Michael had spilt the beans! |
| By looking for where the juice had been spilled, it was easy to see where little Jimmy had gone! | By looking for where the juice had been spilt, it was easy to see where little Jimmy had gone! |
Past tense of spill
The simple past tense form of the verb spill is spilled. Spill means “allow liquid to slop out of a container” (e.g., “As Nate put the jug on the table, he spilled some of the milk on the clean tablecloth”).
By extension, a crowd of people, for example, can spill out of a space if there are too many of them. Or anything that can’t be contained in a certain space might be described as spilling out or over (e.g., “His large belly spilled over the top of his uniform pants”).
Spill can also be used figuratively in idioms like “spill the beans,” meaning “break a confidence” (e.g., “We all knew it wouldn’t be long before Sally spilled the beans”).
If it could be spilled, then Jake could spill it; his friends said it was his superpower.
Of course, I spilled the ketchup on my clean white shirt!
Past participle of spill
In American English, spill is a regular verb, forming the past tense and past participle by adding “-ed” to the infinitive.
In British English, however, it is an irregular verb, with spilled as the simple past form and spilt as the past participle. The past participle is used to form the perfect tenses and the passive voice.
| American English | British English |
|---|---|
| Audrey was mortified; she had spilled the red wine all over the beige carpet. | Audrey was mortified; she had spilt the red wine all over the beige carpet. |
| Ms. Kumar was such a popular teacher that the crowd of students at her farewell assembly had spilled into the hallway. | Ms. Kumar was such a popular teacher, that the crowd of students at her farewell assembly had spilt into the hallway. |
| It was such a trivial argument, but the principal knew that metaphorical blood would be spilled over it. | It was such a trivial argument, but the principal knew that metaphorical blood would be spilt over it. |
Frequently asked questions about spilt or spilled
- What does crying over spilled milk mean?
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The full saying, “There’s no use crying over spilled milk,” means that we shouldn’t waste time regretting something that cannot be changed. There’s nothing that can be done once the milk is spilled except clean up and move on.
Spill is a regular verb in American English and irregular in British English. In American English, the simple past tense form and past participle are both spilled. British English shares the same past tense, but the past participle is spilt.
To make sure you have the right spelling of spilt or spilled, you can use the QuillBot Grammar Checker.
- What does spill the beans mean?
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When you “spill the beans,” you confess or share something that you know in confidence. It is somewhat informal and is unlikely to be used to describe, for example, betraying state secrets.
- Caruthers spilled the beans about the location of the safe house.
- Alan could never keep a secret and spilled the beans about the surprise party.
When you are using the past participle, bear in mind that it is spelled differently in American English and British English. In American English the past participle is spilled, and in British English it is spilt.
