preservation
Americannoun
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the act or process of keeping something in existence.
The creation, stabilization, and preservation of quality long-term affordable housing is a critical step in maintaining a healthy community.
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the act or process of keeping something safe from damage or deterioration.
The facilities include air-conditioned storage vaults for optimum preservation of the historic film archive.
The natural growth of population continuously presents problems for the preservation of the environment.
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the process of preparing food or other perishables to resist spoilage or decomposition.
Historic techniques of food preservation include drying, smoking, pickling, and salting.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of preservation
First recorded in 1400–50; from Medieval Latin praeservātion-, stem of praeservātio “a guarding,” equivalent to praeservāt-, stem of praeservāre + Latin -iō -ion ( def. ); see preserve ( def. )
Explanation
Use the noun preservation to refer to the protection of something — especially from loss, injury, or danger. You might fight for the preservation of the woodlands near your house because of all the animals that live there. Preservation is also a process that keeps organic things from decomposing. If the preservation of the flowers in your prom corsage is important to you, you can dry the flowers to keep them from decaying. If you dry them, they'll probably last longer than your relationship with your high school boyfriend! The word preservation is often used when referring to historic preservation, which is the protection of buildings and sites of historic significance.
Vocabulary lists containing preservation
The Mayflower Compact (1620)
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Human Geography - Middle School
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Human Geography - High School
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The LA Local obtained photos of a petition asking voters to remove their names from the Billboard Blight Elimination and Neighborhood Preservation Initiative.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 9, 2026
Tad Heuer, representing the National Trust for Historic Preservation, urged the court to halt the ballroom project.
From Barron's • Jun. 5, 2026
The US National Trust for Historic Preservation filed a lawsuit to stop the construction, saying "no president is legally allowed to tear down portions of the White House without any review whatsoever".
From BBC • Jun. 4, 2026
“Even if we are slow and we make mistakes and we fight, that process has meaning to us,” Carol Quillen of the National Trust for Historic Preservation told the Times.
From Slate • May 18, 2026
He and Lily are both members of the World Seed Preservation Organization, a group committed to preserving original species of plants.
From "The Adoration of Jenna Fox" by Mary E. Pearson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
