Adjacent Words

Spare definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

SPARE, v.t. [It seems to be from the same root as L. parco.]
1. To use frugally; not to be profuse; not to waste. Thou thy Father's thunder did'st not spare/
2. To save or withhold from any particular use or occupation. He has no bread to spare, that is, to withhold from his necessary uses. All the time he could spare from the necessary cares of his weighty charge, he bestowed on prayer and serving of God.
3. To part with without much inconvenience; to do without. I could have better spar'd a better man. Nor can we spare you long-
4. To omit; to forbear. We might have spared this toil and expense; Be pleas'd your politics to spare.
5. To use tenderly; to treat with pity and forbearance; to forbear to afflict, punish or destroy. Spare us, good Lord. dim sadness did not spare celestial visages. But man alone can whom be conquers spare.
6. Not to take when in one's power; to forbear to destroy; as, to spare the life of a prisoner.
7. To grant; to allow; to indulge. Where anger Jove did never spare one breath of kind and temp'rate air.
8. TO forbear to inflict of impose. Spare my sight the pain of seeing what a world of tears it cost you.
SPARE, v.i.
1. TO live frugally; to be parsimonious. Who at some times spend, as other spare, divided between carelessness and care.
2. To forbear; to be scrupulous. To pluck and cat my fill I spar'd not.
3. To be frugal; not to be profuse.
4. To use mercy or forbearance; to forgive to be tender. The king was sparing and compassionate towards hid subjects.
SPARE, a.
1. Seanty; parsimonious; not abundant; as a spare diet. He was spare but discreet of speech. [We more generally use, in the latter application, sparing; as, he was sparing of words.]
2. That can be dispensed with; not wanted; superfluous. I have no spare time on my hands. If that no spare clothes he had to give.
3. Lean; wanting flesh; meager; thin. O give me your spare men and spare me the great ones.
4. Slow. [Not in use.]
SPARE, n. Parsimony; frugal use. [Not in use.]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

adj
1: thin and fit; "the spare figure of a marathon runner"; "a body kept trim by exercise" [syn: spare, trim]
2: more than is needed, desired, or required; "trying to lose excess weight"; "found some extra change lying on the dresser"; "yet another book on heraldry might be thought redundant"; "skills made redundant by technological advance"; "sleeping in the spare room"; "supernumerary ornamentation"; "it was supererogatory of her to gloat"; "delete superfluous (or unnecessary) words"; "extra ribs as well as other supernumerary internal parts"; "surplus cheese distributed to the needy" [syn: excess, extra, redundant, spare, supererogatory, superfluous, supernumerary, surplus]
3: not taken up by scheduled activities; "a free hour between classes"; "spare time on my hands" [syn: spare, free]
4: kept in reserve especially for emergency use; "a reserve supply of food"; "a spare tire"; "spare parts"
5: lacking in amplitude or quantity; "a bare livelihood"; "a scanty harvest"; "a spare diet" [syn: bare, scanty, spare]
6: lacking embellishment or ornamentation; "a plain hair style"; "unembellished white walls"; "functional architecture featuring stark unornamented concrete" [syn: plain, bare, spare, unembellished, unornamented] n
1: an extra component of a machine or other apparatus [syn: spare part, spare]
2: an extra car wheel and tire for a four-wheel vehicle [syn: fifth wheel, spare]
3: a score in tenpins; knocking down all ten after rolling two balls v
1: refrain from harming [syn: spare, save]
2: save or relieve from an experience or action; "I'll spare you from having to apologize formally"
3: give up what is not strictly needed; "he asked if they could spare one of their horses to speed his journey" [syn: spare, give up, part with, dispense with]
4: use frugally or carefully

Merriam Webster's

I. verb (spared; sparing) Etymology: Middle English, from Old English sparian; akin to Old High German spar?n to spare, Old English spær, adjective, scant Date: before 12th century transitive verb 1. to forbear to destroy, punish, or harm 2. to refrain from attacking or reprimanding with necessary or salutary severity 3. to relieve of the necessity of doing or undergoing something <spare yourself the trouble> 4. to refrain from ; avoid <spared no expense> 5. to use or dispense frugally — used chiefly in the negative <don't spare the syrup> 6. a. to give up as not strictly needed <do you have any cash to spare> b. to have left over or as margin <time to spare> intransitive verb 1. to be frugal 2. to refrain from doing harm • spareable adjective • sparer noun II. adjective (sparer; sparest) Etymology: Middle English, from Old English spær sparing, scant; akin to Old High German spar spare Date: 14th century 1. not being used; especially held for emergency use <a spare tire> 2. being over and above what is needed ; superfluous <spare time> 3. not liberal or profuse ; sparing <a spare prose style> 4. healthily lean 5. not abundant or plentiful Synonyms: see lean, meager • sparely adverb • spareness noun III. noun Date: 1907 1. a. a spare tire b. a duplicate (as a key or a machine part) kept in reserve 2. the knocking down of all 10 pins with the first 2 balls in a frame in bowling

Oxford Reference Dictionary

adj., n., & v. --adj. 1 a not required for ordinary use; extra (have no spare cash; spare time). b reserved for emergency or occasional use (slept in the spare room). 2 lean; thin. 3 scanty; frugal; not copious (a spare diet; a spare prose style). 4 colloq. not wanted or used by others (a spare seat in the front row). --n. 1 Brit. a spare part; a duplicate. 2 Bowling the knocking-down of all the pins with the first two balls. --v. 1 tr. afford to give or do without; dispense with (cannot spare him just now; can spare you a couple). 2 tr. a abstain from killing, hurting, wounding, etc. (spared his feelings; spared her life). b abstain from inflicting or causing; relieve from (spare me this talk; spare my blushes). 3 tr. be frugal or grudging of (no expense spared). 4 intr. archaic be frugal. Phrases and idioms: go spare colloq. 1 Brit. become extremely angry or distraught. 2 be unwanted by others. not spare oneself exert one's utmost efforts. spare part a duplicate part to replace a lost or damaged part of a machine etc. spare tyre 1 an extra tyre carried in a motor vehicle for emergencies. 2 Brit. colloq. a roll of fat round the waist. to spare left over; additional (an hour to spare). Derivatives: sparely adv. spareness n. sparer n. Etymology: OE spær, sparian f. Gmc

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Spare Spare, n. 1. The act of sparing; moderation; restraint. [Obs.] Killing for sacrifice, without any spare. --Holland. 2. Parsimony; frugal use. [Obs.] --Bacon. Poured out their plenty without spite or spare. --Spenser. 3. An opening in a petticoat or gown; a placket. [Obs.] 4. That which has not been used or expended. 5. (Tenpins) The right of bowling again at a full set of pins, after having knocked all the pins down in less than three bowls. If all the pins are knocked down in one bowl it is a double spare; in two bowls, a single spare.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Spare Spare, v. i. 1. To be frugal; not to be profuse; to live frugally; to be parsimonious. I, who at some times spend, at others spare, Divided between carelessness and care. --Pope. 2. To refrain from inflicting harm; to use mercy or forbearance. He will not spare in the day of vengeance. --Prov. vi. 34. 3. To desist; to stop; to refrain. [Obs.] --Chaucer.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Spare Spare, a. [Compar. Sparer; superl. Sparest; -- not used in all the senses of the word.] [AS. sp[ae]r sparing. Cf. Spare, v. t. ] 1. Scanty; not abundant or plentiful; as, a spare diet. 2. Sparing; frugal; parsimonious; chary. He was spare, but discreet of speech. --Carew. 3. Being over and above what is necessary, or what must be used or reserved; not wanted, or not used; superfluous; as, I have no spare time. If that no spare clothes he had to give. --Spenser. 4. Held in reserve, to be used in an emergency; as, a spare anchor; a spare bed or room. 5. Lean; wanting flesh; meager; thin; gaunt. O, give me the spare men, and spare me the great ones. --Shak. 6. Slow. [Obs. or prov. Eng.] --Grose.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Spare Spare, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Spared; p. pr. & vb. n. Sparing.] [AS. sparian, fr. sp[ae]r spare, sparing, saving; akin to D. & G. sparen, OHG. spar?n, Icel. & Sw. spara, Dan. spare See Spare, a.] 1. To use frugally or stintingly, as that which is scarce or valuable; to retain or keep unused; to save. ``No cost would he spare.'' --Chaucer. [Thou] thy Father's dreadful thunder didst not spare. --Milton. He that hath knowledge, spareth his words. --Prov. xvii. 27. 2. To keep to one's self; to forbear to impart or give. Be pleased your plitics to spare. --Dryden. Spare my sight the pain Of seeing what a world of tears it costs you. --Dryden. 3. To preserve from danger or punishment; to forbear to punish, injure, or harm; to show mercy to. Spare us, good Lord. --Book of Common Prayer. Dim sadness did not spare That time celestial visages. --Milton. Man alone can whom he conquers spare. --Waller. 4. To save or gain, as by frugality; to reserve, as from some occupation, use, or duty. All the time he could spare from the necessary cares of his weighty charge, he ?estowed on . . . serving of God. --Knolles. 5. To deprive one's self of, as by being frugal; to do without; to dispense with; to give up; to part with. Where angry Jove did never spare One breath of kind and temperate air. --Roscommon. I could have better spared a better man. --Shak. To spare one's self. (a) To act with reserve. [Obs.] Her thought that a lady should her spare. --Chaucer. (b) To save one's self labor, punishment, or blame.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(spares, sparing, spared) Frequency: The word is one of the 3000 most common words in English. 1. You use spare to describe something that is the same as things that you are already using, but that you do not need yet and are keeping ready in case another one is needed. Don't forget to take a few spare batteries... He could have taken a spare key... The wagons carried spare ammunition. ADJ: usu ADJ n • Spare is also a noun. Give me the trunk key and I'll get the spare. N-COUNT 2. You use spare to describe something that is not being used by anyone, and is therefore available for someone to use. The spare bedroom is on the second floor... There was hardly a spare inch of space to be found. ADJ: usu ADJ n 3. If you have something such as time, money, or space to spare, you have some extra time, money, or space that you have not used or which you do not need. You got here with ninety seconds to spare... It's not as if he has money to spare... VERB: only to-inf, V, V 4. If you spare time or another resource for a particular purpose, you make it available for that purpose. She said that she could only spare 35 minutes for our meeting... He suggested that his country could not spare the troops for such an operation. VERB: V n, V n 5. If a person or a place is spared, they are not harmed, even though other people or places have been. (LITERARY) We have lost everything, but thank God, our lives have been spared... VERB: usu passive, be V-ed 6. If you spare someone an unpleasant experience, you prevent them from suffering it. I wanted to spare Frances the embarrassment of discussing this subject... She's just trying to spare Shawna's feelings... VERB: V n n, V n 7. see also sparing 8. If you spare a thought for an unfortunate person, you make an effort to think sympathetically about them and their bad luck. Spare a thought for the nation's shopkeepers–consumer sales slid again in May... PHRASE: V inflects, PHR n

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

I. v. a. 1. Reserve, save, lay by, lay aside, set apart, set aside. 2. Dispense with, do without, part with. 3. Withhold, omit, forbear, refrain from. 4. Withhold from, keep from. 5. Give, grant, afford, allow, give up. 6. Preserve (from anything dreaded), save. 7. Save, withhold, gain, reserve. II. v. n. 1. Be frugal, be parsimonious, economize, pinch. 2. Forbear, refrain, be scrupulous. 3. Be lenient, be merciful, be tender, forgive. III. a. 1. Scanty, sparing, frugal, stinted. 2. Parsimonious, chary, sparing. 3. Lean, meagre, thin, poor, lank, gaunt, skinny, scraggy, raw-boned, emaciated. 4. Superfluous, supernumerary.

Moby Thesaurus

Lenten, Scotch, Spartan, abandon, abjure, absolve, abstain, abstain from, abstemious, accessory, additional, afford, agent, allow, alternate, alternative, amnesty, analogy, ancillary, angular, another, as a bonus, ascetic, austere, auxiliary, avoid, award, backup, balance, bald, bare, basic, bear, bestow, bonus, bony, cadaverous, candid, canny, careful, casual, cede, change, changeling, chary, chaste, cheeseparing, collateral, common, commonplace, comparison, conserve, conserved, conserving, contributory, copy, copyright, counterfeit, de trop, deliver, deputy, direct, discharge, disgorge, dispensable, dispense, dispense from, dispense with, dispose of, dividend, do without, donate, double, drop, dry, dull, dummy, dump, dwarfed, dwarfish, economic, economizing, elementary, endure, equal, equivalent, ersatz, eschew, essential, except, excess, exchange, exculpate, excuse, exempt, exiguous, exonerate, expendable, expletive, extra, fake, farther, fill-in, flat, flat-chested, fleshless, for lagniappe, forbear, forehanded, forgive, forgo, forsake, forswear, frank, free, fresh, frugal, fundamental, further, gangling, gangly, gaunt, gawky, get along without, get rid of, ghost, ghostwriter, give, give absolution, give away, give dispensation from, give quarter, give up, grant amnesty to, grant forgiveness, grant immunity, grant remission, gratuitous, gratuity, guard, have done with, have mercy upon, have pity, held, held back, held in reserve, held out, hold, hold aloof from, hold back, hold off, homely, homespun, homogeneous, idle, imitation, impoverished, in abeyance, in addition, in excess, in hand, in reserve, incidental, indivisible, irreducible, jejune, keep, keep alive, keep back, keep from, keep in hand, keep intact, keep inviolate, keep safe, keep up, kept, kiss good-bye, labor-saving, lagniappe, lank, lanky, lay aside, lay away, lay by, lay in, lay up, lean, lean-fleshed, lean-looking, left, leftover, leisure, leisured, let alone, let go, let go by, let have, let off, let up on, liberate, limited, locum tenens, maintain, make a sacrifice, makeshift, margin, matter-of-fact, meager, mean, melt, mere, metaphor, metonymy, mint, miserly, mock, modest, money-saving, monolithic, more, more than enough, narrow, natural, neat, needless, net, never touch, new, next best thing, niggardly, nonessential, not destroy, not endanger, not expend, not touch, not use, not use up, not waste, occasional, odd, of a piece, off, open, original, other, out-of-the-way, outstanding, over, over and above, overage, overmeasure, overplus, overrun, overset, overstock, oversupply, paltry, pardon, parsimonious, part with, part-time, pass up, patent, penny-wise, personnel, phony, pinch, pinch hitter, plain, plain-speaking, plain-spoken, pleonastic, plus, poor, pourboire, preserve, preserved, primal, primary, pristine, prolix, prosaic, prosing, prosy, protect, provident, provisional, proxy, prudent, prudential, puny, pure, pure and simple, put aside, put by, quitclaim, rawboned, recant, redeem, redundant, refrain, refrain from, register, relax, release, relent, relief, relieve, relinquish, remainder, remaining, remanent, remise, remit, render up, renounce, replacement, representative, reprieve, rescue, reserve, reserved, reserves, resign, retained, retired, retract, ringer, rustic, sacrifice, salt away, save, save the necessity, saved, saving, scant, scanty, scraggy, scrawny, scrimp, scrimping, scrimpy, second string, secondary, semiretired, severe, short, shrive, shun, side, sign, simon-pure, simple, simple-speaking, single, skeletal, skimp, skimping, skimpy, skinny, slender, slight, slim, small, sober, something extra, spare the price, spares, sparing, sparse, spidery, spindling, spindly, stand, stand aloof from, stand-in, stark, starvation, stingy, stint, stinted, stopgap, stored, straightforward, straitened, stunted, sub, subsistence, substituent, substitute, substitution, succedaneum, supererogatory, superfluous, supernumerary, superseder, supplanter, supplemental, supplementary, support, surplus, surplusage, surrender, surrogate, surviving, suspended, sustain, swear off, symbol, synecdoche, take pity on, tautologic, tautologous, temporary, tentative, thaw, thin, thin-bellied, thin-fleshed, third string, thrifty, throw up, tide, time-saving, tip, to spare, token, twiggy, ulterior, unadorned, unaffected, unapplied, unbeaten, uncalled-for, uncluttered, unconsumed, undergo, undersized, understudy, underweight, undifferenced, undifferentiated, unemployed, unessential, unexercised, unexpended, unhandled, uniform, unimaginative, unnecessary, unneeded, unnourishing, unnutritious, unoccupied, unpoetical, unspent, untapped, untouched, untrodden, unused, unutilized, unvarnished, unwasteful, uphold, utility, utility player, vacate, verbose, vicar, vicarious, vice-president, vice-regent, waive, waived, watered, watery, well afford, wiry, withheld, withhold, yield