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

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

Because the specimen is so exceptionally preserved, scientists were able to examine features that had never been documented in such detail.

From Science Daily • Jun. 4, 2026

It has also been found in 3,000-year-old faeces preserved in a salt mine in Hallstatt, Austria -- which serves as one of the only other available views into the ancient human microbiome.

From Barron's • Jun. 3, 2026

Ghazal Tansir, a Delhi-based doctor who first visited the club for her wedding reception in 2019 through a relative's membership, described it as "a preserved, undisturbed little nook of memories".

From BBC • May 25, 2026

The practice had preserved peace for two hundred years.

From "Ella Enchanted" by Gail Carson Levine

Related Words

• covered
• guaranteed
• guarded
• secured
• sheltered