Synonyms of spare

spare 1 of 3

verb

1

as in to scant

to use or give out in stingy amounts

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

Synonyms & Similar Words

• scant
• conserve
• preserve
• stint (on)
• skimp (on)
• nurse
• portion (out)
• dole out
• pinch
• mete (out)
• shortchange
• ration (out)

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• pour
• heap
• lavish
• rain
• shower

2

as in to save

to avoid unnecessary waste or expense

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

Synonyms & Similar Words

• save
• conserve
• economize
• skimp
• manage
• preserve
• scrimp
• pinch
• pinch pennies
• husband
• maintain
• scrape
• cut down
• hoard
• cut back
• retrench
• lay up

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• waste
• spend
• blow
• squander
• lavish
• throw away
• dissipate
• run through
• misspend
• fritter (away)
• splurge

spare

2 of 3

adjective

ˈsper 

1

as in extra

being over what is needed

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

Synonyms & Similar Words

• extra
• surplus
• excess
• additional
• unwanted
• unnecessary
• superfluous
• redundant
• supernumerary
• supererogatory
• ample
• supplementary
• accessory
• needless
• unneeded
• supplemental
• plentiful
• dispensable
• copious
• nonessential
• unessential
• extraneous
• bountiful
• abundant
• plenteous
• gratuitous
• de trop
• uncalled-for

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• short
• insufficient
• scarce
• scant
• inadequate
• poor
• sparse
• meager
• scanty
• deficient
• skimpy
• shortish

2

as in careful

giving or sharing as little as possible

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

Synonyms & Similar Words

• careful
• close
• sparing
• tight
• selfish
• cheap
• pinching
• parsimonious
• miserly
• mean
• desirous
• conserving
• greedy
• economical
• stingy
• saving
• ungenerous
• tightfisted
• small
• penurious
• chintzy
• stinting
• uncharitable
• penny-pinching
• pinchpenny
• closefisted
• mingy
• economizing
• thrifty
• frugal
• covetous
• chary
• grasping
• sordid
• mercenary
• avaricious
• avid
• hoggish
• shabby
• skimping
• grudging
• acquisitive
• begrudging
• envious
• scrimping
• itchy
• coveting
• resentful
• rapacious
• inhospitable

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• generous
• liberal
• bountiful
• charitable
• bounteous
• unstinting
• free
• unsparing
• munificent
• openhanded
• altruistic
• selfless
• extravagant
• lavish
• unselfish
• handsome
• profuse
• humanitarian
• kindly
• benevolent
• hospitable
• overgenerous
• philanthropic
• magnanimous
• freehanded
• wasting
• beneficent
• compassionate
• wasteful
• profligate
• prodigal
• openhearted
• unthrifty
• spendthrift
• dissipating
• good-hearted
• greathearted
• squandering
• thriftless
• frittering
• splurging

3

as in thin

having a noticeably small amount of body fat

a tall, spare man

Synonyms & Similar Words

• thin
• slender
• skinny
• lean
• bony
• slim
• angular
• gaunt
• trim
• skeletal
• svelte
• lithe
• fatless
• haggard
• wiry
• scrawny
• wasted
• meager
• willowy
• pinched
• sinewy
• waspish
• weedy
• reedy
• spindly
• puny
• lank
• lanky
• clean-limbed
• scraggy
• rawboned
• stringy
• sylphlike
• slight
• wizened
• twiggy
• rangy
• emaciated
• cadaverous
• anorexic
• spindling
• anorectic

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• plump
• gross
• fat
• heavy
• bulky
• chubby
• thick
• corpulent
• overweight
• rotund
• obese
• beefy
• fleshy
• weighty
• portly
• tubby
• stout
• chunky
• stocky
• thickset
• burly
• brawny
• husky
• heavyset
• stubby
• squat
• dumpy
• pudgy
• full
• flabby
• soft
• paunchy
• potbellied
• round
• buxom
• roly-poly
• hippy
• zaftig

4

as in scarce

less plentiful than what is normal, necessary, or desirable

spare vegetation that made foraging very difficult

Synonyms & Similar Words

• scarce
• sparse
• poor
• sparing
• scant
• meager
• lacking
• scanty
• lowest
• light
• skimpy
• small
• short
• insufficient
• slender
• mere
• stingy
• exiguous
• skimp
• minimal
• inadequate
• thin on the ground
• slim
• hand-to-mouth
• wanting
• least
• deficient
• thin
• slightest
• littlest
• bare
• bare-bones
• sterile
• slight
• unfruitful
• unproductive
• barren
• infertile

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• sufficient
• ample
• enough
• adequate
• abundant
• generous
• copious
• liberal
• satisfactory
• plentiful
• bountiful
• rich
• tolerable
• fertile
• extra
• fat
• fruitful
• prolific
• plenteous
• excess
• lavish
• bursting
• surplus
• luxuriant
• fecund
• flourishing
• thriving
• proliferative
• teeming
• blooming
• swarming

spare

3 of 3

noun

as in backup

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

Synonyms & Similar Words

• extra
• backup
• substitute
• reserve
• replacement
• stock
• copy
• double
• reproduction
• duplicate
• replica
• clone
• dummy
• carbon copy
• replication
• dupe

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• prototype
• original
• archetype

Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective spare contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of spare are gaunt, lanky, lank, lean, rawboned, scrawny, and skinny. While all these words mean "thin because of an absence of excess flesh," spare suggests leanness from abstemious living or constant exercise.

the gymnast's spare figure

When could gaunt be used to replace spare?

The words gaunt and spare are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, gaunt implies marked thinness or emaciation as from overwork or suffering.

a prisoner's gaunt face

When is lank a more appropriate choice than spare?

The meanings of lank and spare largely overlap; however, lank implies tallness as well as leanness.

the lank legs of the heron

When is it sensible to use lanky instead of spare?

In some situations, the words lanky and spare are roughly equivalent. However, lanky suggests awkwardness and loose-jointedness as well as thinness.

a lanky youth, all arms and legs

When can lean be used instead of spare?

The synonyms lean and spare are sometimes interchangeable, but lean stresses lack of fat and of curving contours.

a lean racehorse

When would rawboned be a good substitute for spare?

The words rawboned and spare can be used in similar contexts, but rawboned suggests a large ungainly build without implying undernourishment.

a rawboned farmer

How do scrawny and skinny relate to one another, in the sense of spare?

Both scrawny and skinny imply an extreme leanness that suggests deficient strength and vitality.

a scrawny chicken

skinny street urchins

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of spare

Verb

The vaccines are designed to help the immune system recognize tumor-specific markers and attack cancer cells while sparing healthy tissue. — Janet Loehrke, USA Today, 6 Sep. 2026

Soreness began settling in, and Mincey taught us a technique for safely walking on locked knees to spare our tiring muscles, which got us through the steep and gravelly hike. — Sacbee.com, 5 Sep. 2026

Adjective

The company is responsible for importing special equipment and spare parts needed to sustain Cuba’s crumbling power grid. — ABC News, 3 Sep. 2026

Whether placed next to your vintage sofa or in a spare corner in your all-white bedroom, this dimmable bulb casts a wide arc of light from its nearly six-foot-tall bulb. — Yelena Moroz Alpert, Architectural Digest, 2 Sep. 2026

Noun

Stroll subsequently couldn’t participate in FP2 as the team did not have enough time to repair the damage and had to fly more spares out to Hungary from its UK factory. — Madeline Coleman, New York Times, 25 July 2026

Previously, another wrist joint was replaced and both of the arm's end effectors were swapped out for spares. — Robert Z. Pearlman, Space.com, 30 June 2026