preserve

American  

[pri-zurv] / prɪˈzɜrv /

verb (used with object)

preserves, present (3rd person singular) preserved, past participle, past preserving present participle

1. to keep alive or in existence; make lasting.

   to preserve our liberties as free citizens.

   Synonyms:

   conserve

   Antonyms:

   destroy

2. to keep safe from harm or injury; protect or spare.

   Synonyms:

   shield, shelter, safeguard

3. to keep up; maintain.

   to preserve historical monuments.

   Synonyms:

   sustain, keep up, continue

4. to keep possession of; retain.

   to preserve one's composure.

5. to prepare (food or any perishable substance) so as to resist decomposition or fermentation.

6. to prepare (fruit, vegetables, etc.) by cooking with sugar, pickling, canning, or the like.

7. to maintain and reserve (game, fish, etc.) for continued survival or for private use, as in hunting or fishing.

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verb (used without object)

preserves, present (3rd person singular) preserved, past participle, past preserving present participle

1. to preserve fruit, vegetables, etc.; make preserves.

2. to maintain a preserve for game or fish, especially for sport.

noun

preserves plural

1. something that preserves.

2. that which is preserved.

3. Usually preserves. fruit, vegetables, etc., prepared by cooking with sugar.

4. a place set apart for protection and propagation of game or fish, especially for sport.

preserve British  

/ ˌprɛzəˈveɪʃən, prɪˈzɜːv /

verb

1. to keep safe from danger or harm; protect

2. to protect from decay or dissolution; maintain

   to preserve old buildings

3. to maintain possession of; keep up

   to preserve a façade of indifference

4. to prevent from decomposition or chemical change

5. to prepare (food), as by freezing, drying, or salting, so that it will resist decomposition

6. to make preserves of (fruit, etc)

7. to rear and protect (game) in restricted places for hunting or fishing

8. (intr) to maintain protection and favourable conditions for game in preserves

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noun

1. something that preserves or is preserved

2. a special area or domain

   archaeology is the preserve of specialists

3. (usually plural) fruit, etc, prepared by cooking with sugar

4. areas where game is reared for private hunting or fishing

Synonym Usage

See defend.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• preservability
  noun
• preservation
  noun
• preserver
  noun
• nonpreservable
  adjective
• preservable
  adjective
• unpreservable
  adjective
• preservably
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• preserves
  plural

Participles

• preserving
  present
• preserved
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• preserve
  simple
• preserves
  simple
• have preserved
  perfect
• has preserved
  perfect
• am preserving
  progressive
• are preserving
  progressive
• is preserving
  progressive
• have been preserving
  perfect progressive
• has been preserving
  perfect progressive

Past

• preserved
  simple
• had preserved
  perfect
• was preserving
  progressive
• were preserving
  progressive
• had been preserving
  perfect progressive

Future

• will preserve
  simple
• will have preserved
  perfect
• will be preserving
  progressive
• will have been preserving
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of preserve

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English preserven, from Medieval Latin praeservāre “to guard” ( Late Latin: “to observe”), equivalent to Latin prae- prefix meaning “before, prior to, in advance” ( see pre-) + servāre “to watch over, keep, preserve, observe”

Explanation

When you preserve something, you maintain its condition, like trying to preserve your good health by exercising regularly and eating right. The verb preserve describes keeping something as it is now, without a decline in quality. It can also refer to keeping something safe from harm, as in “The group worked hard to preserve the regional ecosystem.” When you preserve food, such as fruit, you keep it from rotting. Jellies and jams are preserves, the noun form. A preserve can also be lands set aside, or preserved, as animal habitats.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

preserve preserves preserved preserving

But while his collaborators — among them Rosalía, Katy Perry and Rauw Alejandro — live their lives in the spotlight, Stillz, 27, goes to great lengths to preserve his privacy.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 13, 2026

Some get on the bandwagon, happy to parrot whatever they’re told will preserve their careers.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 13, 2026

Using brain stroke as an example, Folkerth says the atlas has uncovered new features that could help doctors preserve brain tissue that is injured but not yet beyond repair, potentially improving patient outcomes.

From BBC ● Jul. 13, 2026

An experimental compound that blocked HTR2B helped preserve valve structure and improved measurements of blood flow during an early stage of fibrotic remodeling.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 12, 2026

Later: the Morning of 16 May.—God preserve my sanity, for to this I am reduced.

From "Dracula" by Bram Stoker

The combat also clearly draws from modern Assassin's Creed games, but preserves some of the timing-based battling of the original.

From BBC ● Jul. 11, 2026

She marshals the data to show how women continue to face unique impediments to success, and how both men and women justify their actions in a way that preserves the status quo.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 8, 2026

Unlike a tree stump, which preserves rings from an organism's entire life, dinosaur bones provide only a partial record.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 22, 2026

“AB 46 preserves diversion as an important pathway to care while ensuring judges have a clearer and more workable standard when serious public safety concerns are present,” Nguyen said in a statement last month.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 18, 2026

The next evening, I sat in the kitchen, admiring the jars of peach preserves, which were neatly lined up on the counter.

From "It All Comes Down to This" by Karen English

Meanwhile, a team of climbers stumbled upon a preserved boot, which is believed to have belonged to Irvine, after it was revealed by melting ice on a glacier in 2024.

From BBC ● Jul. 12, 2026

A shelf says: I buy my tuna packed in olive oil, not water, and I know what to do with preserved lemons.

From Salon ● Jul. 11, 2026

The researchers found that people who reached 100 years of age had unusually high levels of certain primary and secondary bile acids along with preserved levels of several steroids.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 5, 2026

Supporters of current policy cite these provisions to argue that important child nutrition supports are being preserved and even made more flexible, complicating the narrative that children’s food assistance is uniformly being slashed.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 3, 2026

They were the most inclined to settle in one place, and longest preserved their ancestral habit of living in tunnels and holes.

From "The Fellowship of the Ring" by J.R.R. Tolkien

Mirren and Hackford purchased the property in 1986 and spent decades restoring and preserving its Old Hollywood charm while adding elegant upgrades.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 13, 2026

But finding it is almost the easy part, explains Dr Fiann Smithwick, an independent palaeontologist who has been collecting and preserving fossils for the past 20 years.

From BBC ● Jul. 11, 2026

“Everyday Republicans and Democrats and everybody in the middle are united in preserving our way of life for future generations,” Owens said, adding a message to rural communities across the country.

From Salon ● Jul. 9, 2026

At almost every stage of childhood development, he notes, programs aimed at preserving or enhancing children’s health have gone on the chopping block.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 3, 2026

“What?” said Estella, preserving her attitude of indifference as she leaned against the great chimney-piece and only moving her eyes; “do you reproach me for being cold? You?”

From "Great Expectations" by Charles Dickens

Related Words

• conserve
• defend
• freeze
• keep
• perpetuate
• protect
• retain
• safeguard
• save
• secure
• store
• sustain
• uphold