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Showing results for preservative. Search instead for Reservative.
Synonyms

preservative

American  
[pri-zur-vuh-tiv] / prɪˈzɜr və tɪv /

noun

  1. something that preserves or tends to preserve.

  2. a chemical substance used to preserve foods or other organic materials from decomposition or fermentation.

adjective

  1. tending to preserve.

preservative British  
/ prɪˈzɜːvətɪv /

noun

  1. something that preserves or tends to preserve, esp a chemical added to foods to inhibit decomposition

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

adjective

  1. tending or intended to preserve

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • nonpreservative adjective

Etymology

Origin of preservative

1350–1400; Middle English (adj. and noun) < Middle French preservatif (adj.) < Medieval Latin praeservātīvus. See preserve, -ative

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.

It is commonly used as a preservative, an antibacterial agent, and in leather tanning.

From Science Daily • Feb. 3, 2026

Both shoppers say they prefer to buy foods that are preservative free when possible.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 28, 2026

More than 700,000 of those products contained at least one preservative.

From Science Daily • Jan. 9, 2026

In the study, 40 babies were injected with vaccines containing thimerosal, while a control group of 21 babies got shots that did not contain the preservative.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 29, 2025

He suggested that she increase the proportion of preservative that she used.

From "The God of Small Things" by Arundhati Roy

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.