preserved

American  

[pri-zurvd] / prɪˈzɜrvd /

adjective

1. (of food or any perishable substance) prepared by canning, pickling, salting, or the like, or treated by some process to prevent decomposition or fermentation.

   I had never had such fresh-tasting preserved fruit before.

2. kept safe from harm or injury; protected or spared.

   This is a wonderfully preserved example of Mayan cave art.

3. kept up or maintained; kept in good condition or health.

   Tucked in Amsterdam’s inner city is a uniquely preserved 17th-century house from the Dutch Golden Age.

4. kept alive or in existence.

   When I take a portrait photograph, I’m capturing a moment in a life, making it a preserved memory.

5. (of game or fish, natural habitats, etc.) maintained or reserved for continued hunting or fishing, or for private or public use and appreciation.

   New walking trails will be built through the preserved areas of parkland.

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verb

1. the simple past tense and past participle of preserve.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• semipreserved
  adjective
• unpreserved
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of preserved

First recorded in 1550–60; preserve ( def. ) + -ed ² ( def. ) for the adjective senses; preserve ( def. ) + -ed ¹ ( def. ) for the verb sense

Explanation

Something that's preserved is kept in its original state or kept alive and fresh. Preserved artifacts are protected from damage, often in a museum where they can be kept safe. Preserved food is treated in some way that makes it spoil much more slowly than it would otherwise. Sometimes this is done by adding chemical preservatives, and other times it's a more natural process, involving drying, pickling, salting, or canning. Preserved fruit, cooked with sugar and sealed in jars, is also called preserves. These words all stem from the Medieval Latin preservare, "keep safe."

Example Sentences

The new investment would mean the craft would be preserved, they added.

From BBC • Jun. 9, 2026

The funk and sunshine of preserved lemon stirred into a vinaigrette.

From Salon • Jun. 9, 2026

"Your skin barrier - which keeps toxins out and keeps moisture in - is beautifully preserved… That's youth, that's the beauty of skin."

From BBC • Jun. 6, 2026

But Barry Eichengreen, an economics professor at the University of California, Berkeley, points to geopolitical and security factors that have preserved the dollar’s status.

From Barron's • Jun. 5, 2026

“But I think the mastodons died and their bodies got run over, and then frozen and preserved in ice.”

From "The Season of Styx Malone" by Kekla Magoon

Related Words

• covered
• guaranteed
• guarded
• secured
• sheltered