SPARE

plain, bare, spare, unembellished, unornamented

(adjective) lacking embellishment or ornamentation; “a plain hair style”; “unembellished white walls”; “functional architecture featuring stark unornamented concrete”

scanty, bare(a), spare

(adjective) lacking in magnitude or quantity; “a bare livelihood”; “a scanty harvest”; “a spare diet”

spare, trim

(adjective) thin and fit; “the spare figure of a marathon runner”; “a body kept trim by exercise”

excess, extra, redundant, spare, supererogatory, superfluous, supernumerary, surplus

(adjective) 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”

spare

(adjective) kept in reserve especially for emergency use; “a reserve supply of food”; “a spare tire”; “spare parts”

spare, free

(adjective) not taken up by scheduled activities; “a free hour between classes”; “spare time on my hands”

spare

(noun) a score in tenpins; knocking down all ten after rolling two balls

spare

(verb) use frugally or carefully

spare, give up, part with, dispense with

(verb) give up what is not strictly needed; “he asked if they could spare one of their horses to speed his journey”

spare, save

(verb) refrain from harming

spare

(verb) save or relieve from an experience or action; “I’ll spare you from having to apologize formally”

Source: WordNet® 3.1


Etymology 1

Adjective

spare (comparative sparer, superlative sparest)

Scant; not abundant or plentiful.

Sparing; frugal; parsimonious; not spending much money.

Being more than what is necessary, or what must be used or reserved; not wanted, or not used; superfluous.

Held in reserve, to be used in an emergency.

Lean; lacking flesh; meager; thin; gaunt.

(UK, informal) Very angry; frustrated or distraught.

(obsolete, UK, dialect) Slow.

Noun

spare (plural spares)

The act of sparing; moderation; restraint.

Parsimony; frugal use.

An opening in a petticoat or gown; a placket.

That which has not been used or expended.

A spare part, especially a spare tire.

A superfluous or second-best person, specially (in a dynastic context) in the phrase "An heir and a spare".

(bowling) 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.

(bowling) The act of knocking down all remaining pins in second ball of a frame; this entitles the pins knocked down on the next ball to be added to the score for that frame.

(Canada) A free period; a block of school during which one does not have a class.

Etymology 2

Verb

spare (third-person singular simple present spares, present participle sparing, simple past and past participle spared)

To show mercy.

(intransitive) To desist; to stop; to refrain.

(intransitive) To refrain from inflicting harm; to use mercy or forbearance.

(transitive) To preserve from danger or punishment; to forbear to punish, injure, or harm; to show mercy.

To keep.

(intransitive) To be frugal; not to be profuse; to live frugally; to be parsimonious.

(transitive) To keep to oneself; to forbear to impart or give.

(transitive) To save or gain, as by frugality; to reserve, as from some occupation, use, or duty.

(transitive) (to give up): To deprive oneself of, as by being frugal; to do without; to dispense with; to give up; to part with.

Anagrams

• Asper, Earps, Pears, Peras, RESPA, Rapes, Spear, Spera, apers, apres, après, aprĂ©s, as per, asper, pares, parse, pears, prase, presa, præs., rapes, reaps, sarpe, spear

Source: Wiktionary


Spare, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Spared; p. pr. & vb. n.n Sparing.] Etym: [AS. sparian, fr. spær spare, sparing, saving; akin to D. & G. sparen, OHG. spar, 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 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.

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.

Spare, a. [Compar. Sparer; superl. Sparest; -- not used in all the senses of the word.] Etym: [AS. spær 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.

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)

Definition: 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.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



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Word of the Day

28 April 2024

POLYGENIC

(adjective) of or relating to an inheritable character that is controlled by several genes at once; of or related to or determined by polygenes


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Coffee Trivia

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