save

verb

\ˈsāv

saved; saving

Definition of save

(Entry 1 of 4)

transitive verb

1a : to deliver from sin

b : to rescue or deliver from danger or harm

c : to preserve or guard from injury, destruction, or loss

d : to store (data) in a computer or on a storage device (such as a CD or flash drive) save a file Remember to save your work frequently.

2a : to put aside as a store or reserve : accumulate saving money for emergencies

b : to spend less by save 25 percent

3a : to make unnecessary : avoid it saves an hour's driving

b(1) : to keep from being lost to an opponent

(2) : to prevent an opponent from scoring or winning

4 : maintain, preserve save appearances

intransitive verb

1 : to rescue or deliver someone

2a : to put aside money

b : to avoid unnecessary waste or expense : economize

c : to spend less money

3 : to make a save

save

noun

Definition of save (Entry 2 of 4)

1 : a play that prevents an opponent from scoring or winning

2 : the action of a relief pitcher in baseball in successfully protecting a team's lead also : official credit for a save

save

preposition

Definition of save (Entry 3 of 4)

: other than : but, except no hope save one

save

conjunction

Definition of save (Entry 4 of 4)

1 : except for the fact that : only —used with that of his earlier years little is known, save that he studied violin— J. N. Burk

2 : but, except —used before a word often taken to be the subject of a clause no one knows about it save she

Other Words from save Synonyms & Antonyms Choose the Right Synonym More Example Sentences Learn More about save

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Choose the Right Synonym for save

Verb

rescue, deliver, redeem, ransom, reclaim, save mean to set free from confinement or danger. rescue implies freeing from imminent danger by prompt or vigorous action. rescued the crew of a sinking ship deliver implies release usually of a person from confinement, temptation, slavery, or suffering. delivered his people from bondage redeem implies releasing from bondage or penalties by giving what is demanded or necessary. job training designed to redeem school dropouts from chronic unemployment ransom specifically applies to buying out of captivity. tried to ransom the kidnap victim reclaim suggests a bringing back to a former state or condition of someone or something abandoned or debased. reclaimed long-abandoned farms save may replace any of the foregoing terms; it may further imply a preserving or maintaining for usefulness or continued existence. an operation that saved my life

Examples of save in a Sentence

Verb

He is trying to save his marriage by going to counseling for his drug addiction. She saved a tense situation by staying calm. Thinner computer monitors save space. She would rather save than spend. Save a little money for later. She saves part of her pay every week. I saved $20,000 for a down payment on the house. She saved $15 at the grocery store by using coupons.

Noun

The goalie made a spectacular save. He leads the league in saves.

Preposition

We had no hope save one. everyone save me is going to the party

Conjunction

Little is known about his early years save that he left home when he was very young.

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

This year, Nordstrom has marked down more than 450 beauty products for its annual Anniversary Sale, and while there are splurges aplenty (there's still a Crème de la Mer going for $1,095), there are some really great saves, too. — Samantha Sasso, refinery29.com, "We Found The Cheapest Beauty Deals At Nordstrom So You Didn't Have To," 14 July 2018 Knowing that every $1 spent on mitigation at the community level saves $6 down the road, experts focused on finding ways to prepare for a disasters. — Jason Pohl, azcentral, "Fires, floods, hurricanes: Disaster experts weigh ‘new normal’," 14 July 2018 The first person was in line at 5 a.m. The shop was saving 75 more slots for regulars who had gotten tattoos at Daredevil before. — Zoe Greenberg, New York Times, "Friday the 13th, a ‘Tattoo Holiday’," 13 July 2018 The days of saving tickets to your favorite Major League Baseball games might be coming to an end. — John Fay, Cincinnati.com, "Cincinnati Reds call up Austin Brice, send down Tanner Rainey," 13 July 2018 There were other teams at work saving the kids – up to 100 military rescuers, including Thai Navy SEALs, all of whom took part in teambuilding exercises of their own. — Eddie Pells, The Christian Science Monitor, "Bond between players and coach may have saved Thai boy's lives," 13 July 2018 That program helped more than 175 homeowners transform their landscapes into climate-appropriate mini-watersheds that not only save water, but achieve additional benefits such as reducing storm water runoff and lessening green waste. — Pomerado News, "Water agencies increase incentives to replace turf," 13 July 2018 Shop the Bloomingdale's sale Dell Tech lovers can save up to 40% on Dell PCs, Alienware and Dell Gaming systems, monitors, accessories, and more for Cyber Week from July 16-23. — Courtney Campbell, USA TODAY, "All the other stores having sales for Amazon Prime Day," 13 July 2018 Its reports helped save money and lives: The OTA found that expanding Medicaid to all pregnant women in poverty would lower the cost of treatment for low birth weight babies by as much as $30,000 per birth. — Clive Thompson, WIRED, "Why Congress Needs to Revive Its Tech Support Team," 13 July 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

Closer Zach Britto then struck out two in a scoreless ninth for his third save. — Katherine Fominykh, baltimoresun.com, "Orioles ride rookie Yefry Ramírez to beat error-riddled Rangers, 1-0," 15 July 2018 Right-hander Andres Munoz (0.00) allowed a hit but recorded the final out to record his second save. — Jeff Sanders, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Logan Allen, Chris Paddack strong but Missions split double header," 14 July 2018 Barraclough flirted with trouble in the ninth, allowing two, two-out singles, but ultimately earned his ninth save of the season. — Mike Persak, Sun-Sentinel.com, "Marlins shut out Phillies, 2-0, even weekend series with division leaders," 14 July 2018 Pierpont, 27, the Yard Goats’ closer, leads the EL with 21 saves, and has blown only one save chance all season. — Dom Amore, courant.com, "Brendan Rodgers Headlines 6 Yard Goats' All-Stars," 29 June 2018 But stars Romelu Lukaku, Eden Hazard and Kevin De Bruyne couldn't find their way through the formidable French defense and goalkeeper Hugo Lloris, who made three crucial saves in the match. — Samuel Chamberlain, Fox News, "France edges Belgium to reach World Cup final," 11 July 2018 When France’s defense was breached, the agile Lloris was on hand to make decisive saves — just like against Uruguay. — Jerome Pugmire, The Seattle Times, "Superb defense takes France close to another World Cup title," 10 July 2018 Others made more saves, but holding the Iberian powers to a goal apiece sets him apart. — Steve Douglas, chicagotribune.com, "AP salutes stars of World Cup group stage, minus Messi," 29 June 2018 Players were diving, making incredible saves, keeping rallies alive, finishing with a flourish. — Richard Obert, azcentral, "Desert Vista captures 6A boys volleyball title for Alex DePriest," 11 May 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Preposition

Saturday marked Andersen’s second 40-plus save performance of the series, the other coming in the Leaf’s 4-2 win in Game 3. — Tyler Horka, SI.com, "Stanley Cup Playoffs Roundup: Toronto Stops Late Surge From Boston to Force Game 6," 21 Apr. 2018 The righty has a 1.38 ERA and 31 strikeouts in 26 innings and has received four of the Astros’ last five save chances, converting them all. — Jon Tayler, SI.com, "The Houston Astros Are Only Getting Better," 19 June 2018 Greene has converted 19 of 22 save chances this season. — Steve Gardner, USA TODAY, "Trade deadline countdown has fantasy owners looking for this year's J.D. Martinez," 27 June 2018 The 82-year-old has been helping to improve Belle Isle, save Eastern Market, ease racial tensions by giving young people something to do with Metro Detroit Youth Day. — Carol Cain, Detroit Free Press, "This Detroiter's path leads directly to a Belle Isle honor," 6 July 2018 For years, the semiconductor world seemed to have settled into a quiet balance: Intel vanquished virtually all of the RISC processors in the server world, save IBM’s POWER line. — Andy Patrizio, Ars Technica, "The AI revolution has spawned a new chips arms race," 9 July 2018 But Haniger picked up the ball and fired a perfect throw home to catcher Mike Zunino, beating Field by five steps to end the game and give Diaz his 23rd save of the season. — Ryan Divish, The Seattle Times, "One-run wonders: Mariners eke out another as Haniger nails final out at the plate," 10 June 2018 Treinen, who turned 30 last week, converted his 19th consecutive save opportunity Wednesday and has yielded one run in his last 22 1/3 innings. — John Shea, SFChronicle.com, "A’s closer Blake Treinen sinks opposition while team soars," 5 July 2018 Kelvin Herrera threw a perfect ninth inning to secure his 13th save of the season and the Royals' seventh win in 11 games. — Maria Torres, kansascity, "'I don't know how it happened': Soler's late homer lifts Royals to a win over the A's," 2 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'save.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.