conserve

[ verb kuhn-surv; noun kon-surv, kuhn-surv ]
See synonyms for: conserveconservedconservingconserver on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object),con·served, con·serv·ing.
  1. to prevent injury, decay, waste, or loss of: Conserve your strength for the race.

  2. to use or manage (natural resources) wisely; preserve; save: Conserve the woodlands.

  1. Physics, Chemistry. to hold (a property) constant during an interaction or process: the interaction conserved linear momentum.

  2. to preserve (fruit) by cooking with sugar or syrup.

noun
  1. Often conserves. a mixture of several fruits cooked to jamlike consistency with sugar and often garnished with nuts and raisins.

Origin of conserve

1
First recorded in 1325–75; (for the verb) Middle English, from Latin conservāre “to save, preserve”; equivalent to con- + serve; (for the noun) Middle English, from Middle French conserve, noun derivative of conserver, from Latin, as above

Other words for conserve

Other words from conserve

  • con·serv·er, noun
  • non·con·serv·ing, adjective, noun
  • self-con·serv·ing, adjective
  • un·con·served, adjective
  • un·con·serv·ing, adjective
  • well-con·served, adjective

Words Nearby conserve

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use conserve in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for conserve

conserve

verb(kənˈsɜːv) (tr)
  1. to keep or protect from harm, decay, loss, etc

  2. to preserve (a foodstuff, esp fruit) with sugar

noun(ˈkɒnsɜːv, kənˈsɜːv)
  1. a preparation of fruit in sugar, similar to jam but usually containing whole pieces of fruit

Origin of conserve

1
(vb) C14: from Latin conservāre to keep safe, from servāre to save, protect; (n) C14: from Medieval Latin conserva, from Latin conservāre

Derived forms of conserve

  • conservable, adjective
  • conserver, noun

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