YOU'RE learning wrong then!!
SPST = SINGLE POLE SINGLE THROW, ie one "circuit", one position, can be "thrown" ON or OFF, comes from when all the switches were "KNIFE" switches, these were "thrown" to avoid the big sparks!!
You see them on old films like FRANKENSTEIN, great big levers with massive contacts, although these were mostly DPDT, DOUBLE POLE DOUBLE THROW, AS TWO THROWS ARE DONE AT ONCE.
Stick around I am a mind of useless info!!
tabetha