reservation

American  

[rez-er-vey-shuhn] / ˌrɛz ərˈveɪ ʃən /

noun

1. the act of keeping back, withholding, or setting apart.

2. the act of making an exception or qualification.

3. an exception or qualification made expressly or tacitly.

   to accept something, but with inner reservations.

4. a tract of public land set apart for a special purpose, as for the use of an Indian tribe.

5. an arrangement to secure accommodations at a restaurant or hotel, on a boat or plane, etc.

6. the record kept or assurance given of such an arrangement.

   Sorry, the hotel has no reservation under that name.

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reservation British  

/ ˌrɛzəˈveɪʃən /

noun

1. the act or an instance of reserving

2. something reserved, esp hotel accommodation, a seat on an aeroplane, in a theatre, etc

3. (often plural) a stated or unstated qualification of opinion that prevents one's wholehearted acceptance of a proposal, claim, statement, etc

4. an area of land set aside, esp (in the US) for American Indian peoples

5. the strip of land between the two carriageways of a dual carriageway

6. the act or process of keeping back, esp for oneself; withholding

7. law a right or interest retained by the grantor in property granted, conveyed, leased, etc, to another

   a reservation of rent

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Other Word Forms

• nonreservation noun

Etymology

Origin of reservation

1350–1400; Middle English reservacioun < Middle French reservation, equivalent to reserv ( er ) to reserve + -ation -ation

Example Sentences

Microsoft’s internal compute capacity reservation for AI research led to disappointing Azure sales and a 10% stock decline.

From Barron's • Apr. 4, 2026

States also have authority under the Tenth Amendment’s reservation to the states and people the power to run their own state elections.

From Slate • Apr. 1, 2026

It did not disclose the number of reservation holders.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 26, 2026

Travelers could also rebook themselves at the new price—though they might need to cancel their original reservation first.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 14, 2026

During one of my last visits to the reservation, in June 2015, I went to the Osage Nation Court, where, in many criminal cases, the Osage now mete out their own justice.

From "Killers of the Flower Moon" by David Grann

Related Words

• doubt
• restriction
• skepticism