Spare — Meaning, Definition & Synonyms

adjective verb noun /ˈsper/

Meaning & Definition of Spare

Spare (adjective)

  1. not being used; especially, held for emergency use
  2. being over and above what is needed, superfluous
  3. not liberal or profuse, sparing

Spare (verb)

  1. to forbear to destroy, punish, or harm
  2. to refrain from attacking or reprimanding with necessary or salutary severity
  3. to relieve of the necessity of doing or undergoing something

Spare (noun)

  1. a spare tire
  2. a duplicate (such as a key or a machine part) kept in reserve
  3. the knocking down of all 10 pins with the first 2 balls in a frame in bowling

Spare (verb) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. to use or give out in stingy amounts

    "I'll have a banana split—and don't spare the whipped cream"

    similar: nurse, scant, skimp (on), stint (on)
    related: dole out, mete (out), portion (out), ration (out), pinch, shortchange, conserve, preserve
    near: heap, lavish, pour, rain, shower

  2. to avoid unnecessary waste or expense

    "she had grown up during the Great Depression, so she was no stranger to sparing"

    similar: economize, pinch, save, scrimp, skimp, pinch pennies
    related: conserve, husband, maintain, manage, preserve, scrape, cut back, cut down, retrench, hoard, lay up
    opposite: waste
    near: blow, dissipate, fritter (away), lavish, misspend, run through, spend, squander, throw away, splurge

Spare (adjective) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. being over what is needed

    "I had some spare time to kill, so I cleaned up my cubicle a bit"

    similar: excess, extra, redundant, supererogatory, superfluous, supernumerary, surplus
    related: accessory, additional, supplemental, supplementary, de trop, dispensable, extraneous, gratuitous, needless, nonessential, uncalled-for, unessential, unnecessary, unneeded, unwanted, abundant, ample, bountiful, copious, plenteous, plentiful
    near: deficient, inadequate, insufficient, meager, poor, scant, scanty, scarce, short, shortish, skimpy, sparse

  2. giving or sharing as little as possible

    "a man who is kind and gentle but definitely spare of speech"

    similar: cheap, chintzy, close, closefisted, mean, mingy, miserly, parsimonious, penny-pinching, penurious, pinching, pinchpenny, sparing, stingy, stinting, tight, tightfisted, uncharitable, ungenerous
    related: careful, chary, conserving, economical, economizing, frugal, saving, scrimping, skimping, thrifty, acquisitive, avaricious, avid, coveting, covetous, desirous, grasping, greedy, hoggish, itchy, mercenary, rapacious, selfish, shabby, small, sordid, begrudging, envious, grudging, resentful, inhospitable
    opposite: bounteous, bountiful, charitable, freehanded, generous, liberal, munificent, openhanded, unsparing, unstinting
    near: altruistic, selfless, unselfish, extravagant, free, handsome, lavish, overgenerous, profuse, beneficent, benevolent, hospitable, humanitarian, philanthropic, compassionate, good-hearted, greathearted, kindly, magnanimous, openhearted, thriftless, unthrifty, dissipating, frittering, prodigal, profligate, spendthrift, splurging, squandering, wasteful, wasting

  3. having a noticeably small amount of body fat

    "a tall, spare man"

    similar: bony, fatless, lean, lithe, skinny, slender, slim, svelte, thin
    related: clean-limbed, trim, sylphlike, willowy, angular, rawboned, scraggy, scrawny, sinewy, wiry, lank, lanky, rangy, reedy, spindling, spindly, stringy, twiggy, waspish, weedy, anorectic, anorexic, cadaverous, emaciated, gaunt, haggard, pinched, skeletal, wasted, wizened, meager, puny, slight
    opposite: chubby, corpulent, fat, gross, obese, overweight, plump, portly, rotund, tubby
    near: beefy, bulky, chunky, fleshy, heavy, heavyset, stocky, stout, thick, thickset, weighty, brawny, burly, husky, dumpy, pudgy, roly-poly, squat, stubby, paunchy, potbellied, flabby, soft, buxom, zaftig, full, hippy, round

  4. less plentiful than what is normal, necessary, or desirable

    "spare vegetation that made foraging very difficult"

    similar: exiguous, hand-to-mouth, light, meager, poor, scant, scanty, scarce, skimp, skimpy, slender, slim, sparing, sparse, stingy, thin on the ground
    related: deficient, inadequate, insufficient, lacking, short, wanting, bare, bare-bones, least, littlest, lowest, mere, minimal, slightest, slight, small, thin, barren, infertile, sterile, unfruitful, unproductive
    opposite: abundant, ample, bountiful, copious, generous, liberal, plenteous, plentiful
    near: adequate, enough, satisfactory, sufficient, tolerable, fat, fecund, fertile, fruitful, prolific, rich, lavish, luxuriant, blooming, bursting, flourishing, proliferative, swarming, teeming, thriving, excess, extra, surplus

Spare (noun) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. an interchangeable part or piece of equipment that is kept on hand for replacement of an original

    "we promptly replaced the burnt-out lightbulb with a spare"

    similar: extra, reserve
    related: backup, substitute, stock, carbon copy, clone, copy, double, dummy, dupe, duplicate, replacement, replica, replication, reproduction
    near: archetype, original, prototype

Synonyms, Thesaurus & Another Word for Spare

The most common words with a similar meaning to Spare:

nurse, scant, skimp (on), stint (on), economize, pinch, save, scrimp, skimp, pinch pennies, excess, extra, redundant, supererogatory, superfluous, supernumerary, surplus, cheap, chintzy, close, closefisted, mean, mingy, miserly, parsimonious, penny-pinching, penurious, pinching, pinchpenny, sparing, stingy, stinting, tight, tightfisted, uncharitable, ungenerous, bony, fatless, lean, lithe

Antonyms & Opposite Words for Spare

Words with the opposite meaning of Spare:

waste, bounteous, bountiful, charitable, freehanded, generous, liberal, munificent, openhanded, unsparing, unstinting, chubby, corpulent, fat, gross, obese, overweight, plump, portly, rotund, tubby, abundant, ample, copious, plenteous, plentiful

Related Words for Spare

dole out, mete (out), portion (out), ration (out), shortchange, conserve, preserve, husband, maintain, manage, scrape, cut back, cut down, retrench, hoard, lay up, accessory, additional, supplemental, supplementary, de trop, dispensable, extraneous, gratuitous, needless, nonessential, uncalled-for, unessential, unnecessary, unneeded

Near Antonyms of Spare

heap, lavish, pour, rain, shower, blow, dissipate, fritter (away), misspend, run through, spend, squander, throw away, splurge, deficient, inadequate, insufficient, meager, poor, scant, scanty, scarce, short, shortish, skimpy, sparse, altruistic, selfless, unselfish, extravagant

Word Forms of Spare

Inflections: sparer, sparest, spared, sparing

Derived words: sparely (adverb), spareness (noun), spareable (adjective), sparer (noun)

Origin & Etymology of Spare

Middle English, from Old English spær sparing, scant; akin to Old High German spar spare

First known use: 14th century

Vocabulary Lists & Topics for Spare

Words & Phrases Containing Spare

spare a thought for, spare change, spare no effort, spare no expense, spare someone's blushes, spare someone's feelings, spare someone's life

Frequently Asked Questions about Spare

What does "Spare" mean?

"Spare" means not being used; especially, held for emergency use. As an an adjective, a verb and a noun, it is defined as: not being used; especially, held for emergency use. It has 7 distinct senses.

What is another word for "Spare"?

Other words for "Spare" include nurse, scant, skimp (on), stint (on), economize, pinch, save and scrimp. The best synonym depends on which meaning of "Spare" you intend.

What are different ways to say "Spare"?

There are 189 words and phrases with a similar meaning to "Spare". Common alternatives include nurse, scant, skimp (on), stint (on), economize, pinch, save, scrimp, skimp and pinch pennies.

What is the opposite of "Spare"?

Antonyms of "Spare" include waste, bounteous, bountiful, charitable, freehanded, generous, liberal and munificent. Near antonyms include heap, lavish, pour and rain.

How do you use "Spare" in a sentence?

Examples of "Spare" in a sentence: "I'll have a banana split—and don't spare the whipped cream"; "she had grown up during the Great Depression, so she was no stranger to sparing"; "I had some spare time to kill, so I cleaned up my cubicle a bit".

Is "Spare" a noun, verb, or adjective?

"Spare" can be used as an adjective, a verb and a noun, depending on the context.

Is "Spare" useful for IELTS, TOEFL, and other English exams?

As a B2-level word, "Spare" is typical of Cambridge B2 First (FCE), IELTS band 5.5–6.5, TOEFL iBT 72–94, PTE Academic 59–75, TOEIC Listening & Reading 785+.

How do you pronounce "Spare"?

"Spare" is pronounced /ˈsper/.