The term 'forked (out)' can be defined as spending or disbursing money. The crossword solutions for this term are 'SPENT' (5 letters), 'shelled' (7 letters) and 'PAID' (4 letters). These words all refer to the act of parting with money, either in the form of cash or other forms of payment. 'SPENT' implies that the money has been used up, while 'shelled' suggests that a large amount of money was PAID out at once. Finally, 'PAID' is a more general term that simply means money has been exchanged.