Word
spay
切除卵巢；给（雌性动物）摘除卵巢
remove the ovaries of (an animal)
- 1.
To destroy or remove the ovaries or uterus (of a female animal) to prevent pregnancy.
切除(雌性动物的)卵巢或子宫以阻止怀孕。
切除(雌性动物的)卵巢或子宫以阻止怀孕。；取掉卵巢；[医] 切除卵巢
In use
They decided to spay the stray cat before adopting her.
The vet spayed the dog last week, and she is recovering well.
Many shelters spay female rabbits to prevent unwanted litters.
spay sth
spay 是及物动词，宾语通常为雌性动物；过去式也可写作 spayed。
The vet spayed the female cat before adoption.
兽医在领养前给这只母猫切除了卵巢。
have sth spayed
用 have sth done 表示安排他人为动物做绝育手术。
We had our dog spayed last month.
我们上个月带狗做了绝育手术。
be spayed
被动语态的主语是接受手术的雌性动物。
The stray rabbit was spayed by the shelter.
这只流浪兔由收容所做了绝育手术。
Verb forms
base spay · third person spays · -ing spaying · past spayed · past participle spayed
规则动词
Common mistakes
The vet spayed the male cat.The vet neutered the male cat.
spay 专指摘除雌性动物的卵巢，不能用于雄性动物；对雄性动物应改用 neuter 或 castrate，这样才能准确表达手术对象和部位。
My female rabbit needs spay.My female rabbit needs spaying.
need 后可接动名词主动形式表示被动含义（needs spaying），或接不定式被动式（needs to be spayed），但不能直接接动词原形 spay。
The spay of the dog was successful.The spaying of the dog was successful.
spay 是动词，不能直接作名词表示‘手术’或‘过程’；需要改用动名词 spaying，或使用 the operation to spay the dog 等名词化结构。
Connections
Collocations
- spay a cat
- 给母猫做绝育（切除卵巢）
- Owners are encouraged to spay their cats to reduce the number of strays.鼓励主人给母猫做绝育，以减少流浪猫的数量。
- get a dog spayed
- 带母狗去做绝育手术
- She took her dog to the clinic to get her spayed.她带自己的母狗去诊所做绝育。
- spay and neuter
- 给（雌雄）动物做绝育和去势
- The local rescue group spays and neuters every animal it takes in.当地救助组织会对接收的每只动物进行绝育和去势。
- spayed female
- 已做绝育的雌性动物
- Adopting a spayed female cat can save you the cost of the operation.领养一只已绝育的母猫可以省下手术费用。
- spay before first heat
- 在第一次发情前做绝育
- Vets often advise owners to spay puppies before their first heat.兽医常常建议主人在幼犬第一次发情前进行绝育。
Learner notes
Memory Tip
联想：spay 里藏着 pay（付款）——带宠物去‘付费’做绝育手术，切除卵巢。
Context & Register
语域：neutral 常见场景：兽医手术、宠物护理 该词多用于兽医和动物护理场景，属于中性的专业用语；日常谈到给宠物做绝育时也比较常见，不显随意。
Grammar Note
过去式亦可拼作 spayed（spaid 为异体）。
Pronunciation & Spelling
These words all rhyme with spay /speɪ/, sharing the final /eɪ/ sound: pay, day, say, way, play, stay. Beware of lookalikes: spa /spɑː/ and spy /spaɪ/ look similar but sound different.
Learn the forms together
页面下方列出了常见词形变化。学习时注意它们在句子中的语法位置。
Dictionary facts from ECDICT, WIKTIONARY.