spare

Meaning

Adj

1. Extra.
2. Extra.
3. Extra.
4. Not plentiful.
5. Not plentiful.
6. Not plentiful.
7. Not plentiful.
8. (UK, informal) Very angry; frustrated or distraught.

Noun

1. The act of sparing; moderation; restraint.
2. Parsimony; frugal use.
3. An opening in a petticoat or gown; a placket.
4. That which has not been used or expended.
5. A spare part, especially a spare tire.
6. A superfluous or second-best person.
7. The right of bowling again at a full set of pins, after having knocked all the pins down in less than three bowls. If all the pins are knocked down in one bowl it is a double spare; in two bowls, a single spare.
8. The act of knocking down all remaining pins in second ball of a frame; this entitles the pins knocked down on the next ball to be added to the score for that frame.
9. (Canada) A free period; a block of school during which one does not have a class.
10. (Myanmar) assistant or extra hand (typically on buses and lorries)

Verb

1. (intransitive) To show mercy, to have mercy on.
2. (intransitive) To show mercy, to have mercy on.
3. (transitive) To show mercy, to have mercy on.
4. (specifically, transitive) To show mercy, to have mercy on.
5. (intransitive) To keep.
6. (transitive) To keep.
7. (transitive) To keep.
8. (transitive) (to give up): To deprive oneself of, as by being frugal; to do without; to dispense with; to give up; to part with.

Synonyms

save

reserve

superfluous

economize

extra

lean

thin

bare

spare part

free

🆓

redundant

leave

backup

conserve

surplus

leave over

scanty

frugal

plain

pardon

excess

afford

unornamented

austere

supernumerary

escape

lank

meager

skinny

scrawny

stingy

rescue

dispense with

fifth wheel

gaunt

unembellished

preserve

provide

rawboned

confer

part with

modest

miserly

omit

pity

left over

liberate

excuse

favour

loose

Translations

épargner

sparen

sparen

économiser

ahorrar

risparmiare

poupar

economizar

erübrigen

besparen

economizar

libre

🆓

uitsparen

uitwinnen

bezuinigen

Pronounced as (IPA)

/ˈspɛə(ɹ)/

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English: spare

Inherited from Old English: spær

Cognate with Dutch: spaarzaam

Cognate with German: sparsam

Cognate with Swedish: sparsam

Cognate with Icelandic: sparr

Cognate with Latin: prosperus

Cognate with Church Slavic: споръ

Cognate with Albanian: shperr

Cognate with Persian: سپار

Cognate with Ancient Greek: σπαρνός

Cognate with Sanskrit: स्फिर

Cognate with Scots: spar

Cognate with Western Frisian: sparje

Cognate with Dutch: sparen

Cognate with German: sparen

Cognate with Swedish: spara

Cognate with Icelandic: spara

In summary

From Middle English spare, spar, from Old English spær (“sparing, scant”), from Proto-Germanic *sparaz, from Proto-Indo-European *sph₁rós, from the root *speh₁-.
Compare Dutch spaar(zaam), German spar(sam) and spär(lich), Swedish spar(sam), Icelandic sparr (“sparing”); also Latin (pro)sperus (“lucky”), Old Church Slavonic споръ (sporŭ, “plentiful”), Albanian shperr (“earn money”), Persian سپار (sepâr, “entrust; deposit”), Ancient Greek σπαρνός (sparnós, “rare”), Sanskrit स्फिर (sphirá, “thick”).