dispendio

Dispendio is a noun in Portuguese that designates the act of spending resources, such as money, time, or effort, and the amount that is spent. In financial and administrative writing it can refer to an expenditure or outlay, and is often used synonymously with upper-level terms such as gasto or despesa. The word tends to carry a formal or technical tone, and may appear in budgeting, accounting, and public administration contexts.

There are two closely related spellings in use: dispêndio (with the circumflex on the e) and dispendio (without diacritics). The choice of spelling can reflect stylistic or typographic preferences, but both refer to the same concept. The corresponding adjective dispendioso describes something that requires a large expenditure or is costly; in everyday language it can also imply wasteful or extravagant spending when paired with evaluative terms such as excessivo or despendioso imprudente.

Etymology traces dispendio to Latin roots connected with spending or outlay, passing into Portuguese through medieval Latin and Old Portuguese forms. The term remains common in formal Portuguese texts and is understood across Portuguese-speaking regions, though in everyday speech más usage often leans toward gasto or despesa.

See also: gasto, despesa, despender, dispêndio, dispendioso.

In summary, dispendio refers to the act and amount of expending resources, with a formal nuance and potential connotation of waste depending on context.