to refrain from harming or destroying; leave uninjured; forbear to punish, hurt, or destroy: to spare one's enemy.
to deal gently or leniently with; show consideration for: His harsh criticism spared no one.
to save from strain, discomfort, embarrassment, or the like, or from a particular cause of it: to spare him the bother; to spare her needless embarrassment.
to refrain from, forbear, omit, or withhold, as action or speech: Spare us the gory details.
to refrain from employing, as some instrument or recourse: to spare the rod.
to set aside for a particular purpose: to spare land for a garden.
to give or lend, as from a supply, especially without inconvenience or loss: Can you spare a cup of sugar? Can you spare me a dollar till payday?
to dispense with or do without: We can't spare a single worker during the rush hour.
to use economically or frugally; refrain from using up or wasting: A walnut sundae, and don't spare the whipped cream!
to have remaining as excess or surplus: We can make the curtains and have a yard to spare.
verb (used without object),spared,spar·ing.
to use economy; be frugal.
to refrain from inflicting injury or punishment; exercise lenience or mercy.
Obsolete. to refrain from action; forbear.
adjective,spar·er,spar·est.
kept in reserve, as for possible use: a spare part.
being in excess of present need; free for other use: spare time.
frugally restricted or meager, as a manner of living or a diet: a spare regime.
lean or thin, as a person.
scanty or scant, as in amount or fullness.
economical, moderate, or temperate, as persons; sparing.
noun
a spare thing, part, etc., as an extra tire for emergency use.
Ceramics. an area at the top of a plaster mold for holding excess slip.
before 900; (v.) Middle Englishsparen,Old Englishsparian; cognate with Dutch,Germansparen,Old Norsespara; (noun and adj.) Middle English; compare Old Englishspær sparing, frugal (cognate with Old High Germanspar,Old Norsesparr
Related formsspare·a·ble, adjectivespare·ly, adverbspare·ness, nounspar·er, nounun·spared, adjective
Old English sparian "to refrain from harming, to allow to go free," from the source of Old English spær "sparing, frugal," from Proto-Germanic *sparaz (cf. Old Frisian sparia, Old Norse spara, Old High German sparon "to spare"). Meaning "to dispense from one's own stock" is recorded from early 13c. Related: Spared; sparing.
adj.
"kept in reserve, not used," late 14c., from spare (v.). Old English had spær "spare, frugal." In reference to time, from mid-15c.; sense of "flimsy, thin" is recorded from 1540s. Spare part is attested from 1888.
n.
"extra thing or part," 1640s, from spare (v.). Middle English noun sense was "mercy, leniency" (early 14c.). Bowling sense of "a knocking down of all pins in two bowls" is attested from 1849, American English.
