spare
/speə/
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
Adjective:
- Extra or additional; kept in reserve: Not currently in use and available for future or emergency needs.
- Not lavish or abundant; meager: Characterized by simplicity, frugality, or a lack of excess.
- Lean; thin: Having a thin or slender physical build.
- Free; unoccupied: Not filled with scheduled or required activities.
Noun:
- An extra item: A duplicate or replacement item kept for future use, especially a tire for a vehicle.
- A successful outcome in bowling: In tenpin bowling, the act of knocking down all ten pins with two rolls of the ball.
Verb:
- To refrain from harming or destroying: To show mercy or leniency by not punishing, killing, or destroying.
- To give or afford without inconvenience or loss: To be able to give something (time, money, an object) because one has more than enough.
- To use frugally or avoid using: To be economical or stingy in the use of something.
Usage Examples
Adjective:
- Do you have a spare key for the house?
- He leads a spare lifestyle with few possessions.
- The marathon runner has a spare frame.
- What do you do in your spare time?
Noun:
- I had a flat tire, so I put on the spare.
- He bowled a spare in the final frame.
Verb:
- The king decided to spare the prisoner's life.
- Can you spare a few minutes to talk?
- Please spare no effort in completing this project.
Advanced Usage
- "to spare" (following a noun phrase): meaning "extra" or "remaining."
- We arrived at the station with time to spare.
- "spare someone the details": to avoid telling someone unpleasant or unnecessary information.
- I'll spare you the details of the accident; it was too gruesome.
- "spare a thought for": to think about someone, especially someone in a difficult situation.
- Let's spare a thought for those who are less fortunate.
Variants and Related Words
- Sparely (adverb): In a sparse, frugal, or meager manner.
- The room was furnished sparely.
- Spareness (noun): The quality of being sparse, lean, or meager.
- The spareness of the landscape was beautiful.
Synonyms
- Adjective: extra, additional, surplus, reserve, meager, frugal, lean, thin, free.
- Verb: save, pardon, forgive, afford, give, part with.
Related Phrasal Verbs
- Spare from: To prevent someone from having to experience something unpleasant.
- The new software spared the team from hours of manual work.
Related Idioms
- Spare the rod, spoil the child: A saying meaning that if you fail to discipline a child, you will spoil their character.
- Enough and to spare: More than enough; an abundance.
- We have food enough and to spare for the party.
Adjective
- lacking embellishment or ornamentation
- a plain hair style
- unembellished white walls
- functional architecture featuring stark unornamented concrete
- lacking in amplitude or quantity
- a bare livelihood
- a scanty harvest
- a spare diet
- kept in reserve especially for emergency use
- a reserve supply of food
- a spare tire
- spare parts
- not taken up by scheduled activities
- a free hour between classes
- spare time on my hands
- 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
- thin and fit
- the spare figure of a marathon runner
- a body kept trim by exercise
Noun
- a score in tenpins; knocking down all ten after rolling two balls
- an extra car wheel and tire for a four-wheel vehicle
- an extra component of a machine or other apparatus
Verb
- use frugally or carefully
- give up what is not strictly needed
- he asked if they could spare one of their horses to speed his journey
- save or relieve from an experience or action
- I'll spare you from having to apologize formally
- refrain from harming