1
as in preserved
to use or give out in stingy amounts
I'll have a banana split—and don't spare the whipped cream
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in saved
to avoid unnecessary waste or expense
she had grown up during the Great Depression, so she was no stranger to sparing
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of spared
The world was spared from disaster during the Cuban Missile Crisis by American and Soviet officers who refused or delayed aggressive executive action.
—
Rachel Marsden, Hartford Courant, 5 Apr. 2026
The culprit is one of the least snowy winter seasons in California in modern times, and the mountains at Yosemite have not been spared.
—Kurtis Alexander, San Francisco Chronicle, 4 Apr. 2026
But his ability to grind through five innings spared the Royals’ bullpen and gave them a chance to win the game.
—Kansas City Star, 4 Apr. 2026
Their unit was the only one spared, its interior still intact like a Thorne miniature room on charred stilts, but the landlord condemned the building and its residents were displaced.
—Nina Corcoran, Pitchfork, 3 Apr. 2026
One certainly gets the feeling that no detail was spared in the design of the space.
—Paige Reddinger, Robb Report, 3 Apr. 2026
But thankfully, Mario (Chris Pratt) and Luigi (Charlie Day) are spared any such soul-searching.
—Lindsey Bahr, Chicago Tribune, 2 Apr. 2026
Against all expectations, the judges spared Henry, and Badinter’s arguments gained traction with the French public.
—Lauren Collins, New Yorker, 1 Apr. 2026
The day when everything around her began to shake and the lumps that embraced her loosened their grip and the tool tossed her through the air, she was spared from being sliced in two by the metal edge.
—María Ospina, The Dial, 31 Mar. 2026
Rachel Marsden, Hartford Courant, 5 Apr. 2026
The culprit is one of the least snowy winter seasons in California in modern times, and the mountains at Yosemite have not been spared.
—Kurtis Alexander, San Francisco Chronicle, 4 Apr. 2026
But his ability to grind through five innings spared the Royals’ bullpen and gave them a chance to win the game.
—Kansas City Star, 4 Apr. 2026
Their unit was the only one spared, its interior still intact like a Thorne miniature room on charred stilts, but the landlord condemned the building and its residents were displaced.
—Nina Corcoran, Pitchfork, 3 Apr. 2026
One certainly gets the feeling that no detail was spared in the design of the space.
—Paige Reddinger, Robb Report, 3 Apr. 2026
But thankfully, Mario (Chris Pratt) and Luigi (Charlie Day) are spared any such soul-searching.
—Lindsey Bahr, Chicago Tribune, 2 Apr. 2026
Against all expectations, the judges spared Henry, and Badinter’s arguments gained traction with the French public.
—Lauren Collins, New Yorker, 1 Apr. 2026
The day when everything around her began to shake and the lumps that embraced her loosened their grip and the tool tossed her through the air, she was spared from being sliced in two by the metal edge.
—María Ospina, The Dial, 31 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for spared
Verb
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The town in South Carolina’s Midlands was founded in the mid-18th century and has been carefully preserved through the decades since.—
Tara Massouleh McCay,
Southern Living,
9 Apr. 2026
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According to a study published in Nature in 2026, the specimens were preserved by mineral-rich water and crude oil, a rare process that retained not only bone but also cartilage, skin and traces of ancient proteins.—
Samantha Agate,
Miami Herald,
9 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Medics rushed Nyron to Brookdale University Hospital, but he could not be saved, cops said.—
Nicholas Williams,
New York Daily News,
8 Apr. 2026
-
His low throw was dug out of the dirt by first baseman Max Farrell, who tagged the base for the ou and saved the official scorer on whether to rule a hit or an error.—
Kirk Kenney,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
8 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Some myosin classes, such as I and II, are widely conserved across many organisms, whereas others are more specialized and restricted to particular lineages—for example, certain classes are found mainly in animals and others in plants.—
Encyclopedia Britannica,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
3 Apr. 2026
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At the end of the day, all the partners in the project share a desire to see the state's natural spaces conserved and made available for recreation by Arkansans and visitors, Andrews said.—
Grant Lancaster,
Arkansas Online,
31 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Spared.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/spared. Accessed 13 Apr. 2026.
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