Spades were tools primarily used for digging.
When they landed on a Australian beach in 2018, the Second Doctor told Jamie McCrimmon and Victoria Waterfield to get some buckets and a spade from the TARDIS for him to build sand castles. However, they were soon attacked by Anton, Rod and Curly, never giving them a chance to fetch the buckets and the spade. (TV: The Enemy of the World)
Rory Williams squashed a giant fly with a spade. (COMIC: Buzz!)
The spade in the Twelfth Doctor's confession dial was made of an amalgam of duralinium and dwarf star alloy, a combination theoretically strong enough to cut azbantium. (PROSE: The Veil)
When Xandra Lenea-Ashford was on holiday in 2003, she was mildly confused when the Ninth Doctor apologised "for the flowerpot", before handing her a flowerpot and a small spade. (PROSE: Have You Seen This Man?)