Meaning

noun an edible tuber native to South America; a staple food of Ireland

noun a sharp hand shovel for digging out roots and weeds

verb initiate drilling operations, as for petroleum

originFrom Middle English spudde (“small knife”). Origin unknown; probably related to Danish spyd, Old Norse spjót (“spear”), German Spieß (“spear; spike; skewer”). Compare English spit (“sharp, pointed rod”). The use of the term for a potato perhaps first appeared in New Zealand and Australian dialect and slang.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0