spared
Americanadjective
-
left intact; not damaged, punished, destroyed, killed, etc..
After a seven-month siege they captured the city, and the spared captives were taken into exile.
After a brain injury in early childhood, language function is typically transferred to the spared hemisphere.
-
dispensed with or done without.
I finally obtained a little ready money by converting some easily spared articles of jewelry into cash.
-
used frugally or not used; withheld; not spent.
At no spared effort or expense, the enhanced design protocol has been applied to all the products in our new lineup.
verb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of spared
First recorded in 1575–85; spare ( def. ) + -ed 2 ( def. ) for the adjective senses; spare ( def. ) + -ed 1 ( def. ) for the verb sense
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Instead, “American Doctor” focuses on the micro, giving voice to the doctors and caregivers who traditionally have been spared during armed conflicts, as laid out by the Geneva Conventions.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026
David Price is one of those whose home escaped the flames in Stourbridge and he is still trying to understand why it was spared.
From BBC ● Aug. 20, 2026
While mountainous areas have been spared the worst of the heat, the exceptional temperatures have seen a record number of rockfalls in the Alps, according to a French scientist.
From Barron's ● Aug. 20, 2026
“With no expense spared, this property boasts luxury quality construction, with grand scale and volume throughout, flooded with fresh air and brilliant Southern California sunlight,” the description states.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 18, 2026
They spared fertile females and young lambs in order to safeguard the long-term vitality of the local herd.
From "Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind" by Yuval Noah Harari
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
