1
as in conserves
to use or give out in stingy amounts
I'll have a banana split—and don't spare the whipped cream
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in saves
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
as in substitutes
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
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of spares
Nikita Ostrovsky, Time, 18 June 2026
Selectivity also spares defendants and victims from the prolonged uncertainty of a lingering case.
—Rebecca Dunlea, The Conversation, 17 June 2026
Given this is one of the lower profile group stage matches taking place in Miami, with the headliners being Colombia-Portugal and Brazil-Scotland, an attendance of over 62,000 is somewhat impressive and spares FIFA’s blushes in the context of how many empty seats there were in the first half.
—Jacob Whitehead, New York Times, 16 June 2026
As for features, Mercedes-Benz spares no expense on its iconic SUV.
—Charles Singh, USA Today, 4 June 2026
Yet once Adam is fully in command of his sword, so to speak, and subjected to a brawny He-Man makeover that at least spares him the lank bowl cut of the original model, things get rather less spry.
—Guy Lodge, Variety, 2 June 2026
The non-Classic Lightroom spares you from having to think about catalogs.
—Michael Muchmore, PC Magazine, 2 June 2026
Robbie spares Tom’s life and later sacrifices himself to ensure a better future for his children.
—Justin Kroll, Deadline, 2 June 2026
Natera spares no detail depicting how the one percent vacations—and the incredible toll luxury tourism extracts from locales, environmentally, emotionally, and existentially.
—Literary Hub, 19 May 2026
Maven Navarro
june 1, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 1 June 2026
And since no one expires from, say, cancer or other now-curable diseases, and bones and organs can be replaced like car parts with artificial spares, people only pass when involved in freak accidents…or take their own lives.
—Leslie Felperin, HollywoodReporter, 24 May 2026
White House officials defended the arrangement, arguing that donor anonymity is standard practice for major projects and that using private funds spares taxpayers.
—Daniel Cassady, ARTnews.com, 22 Apr. 2026
The contract covers full-rate production engines, initial spares, modules, engineering resources, program oversight and dedicated production support services, according to a release from RTX.
—Staff Report, Hartford Courant, 31 Mar. 2026
If a motor with a 12-week lead time breaks and there are no spares, downtime can result in customer attrition.
—Jeff Mahler, Forbes.com, 13 Mar. 2026
Palmeri’s dad, Tony, loved cars from the 1930s, and dual spares weren’t unusual to see on the sides of cars in that era.
—Eric D. Lawrence, Freep.com, 3 Mar. 2026
That means having standard spares available and maintenance procedures drawn up and tested.
—New Atlas, 17 Jan. 2026
Precision is necessary to pick up spares.
—Kirk Kenney, San Diego Union-Tribune, 25 Dec. 2025
Verb
The exclusive course, which is financially supported by oligarch Oleg Deripaska, a Putin associate, spares no expense.
—Nikita Ostrovsky, Time, 18 June 2026
Selectivity also spares defendants and victims from the prolonged uncertainty of a lingering case.
—Rebecca Dunlea, The Conversation, 17 June 2026
Given this is one of the lower profile group stage matches taking place in Miami, with the headliners being Colombia-Portugal and Brazil-Scotland, an attendance of over 62,000 is somewhat impressive and spares FIFA’s blushes in the context of how many empty seats there were in the first half.
—Jacob Whitehead, New York Times, 16 June 2026
As for features, Mercedes-Benz spares no expense on its iconic SUV.
—Charles Singh, USA Today, 4 June 2026
Yet once Adam is fully in command of his sword, so to speak, and subjected to a brawny He-Man makeover that at least spares him the lank bowl cut of the original model, things get rather less spry.
—Guy Lodge, Variety, 2 June 2026
The non-Classic Lightroom spares you from having to think about catalogs.
—Michael Muchmore, PC Magazine, 2 June 2026
Robbie spares Tom’s life and later sacrifices himself to ensure a better future for his children.
—Justin Kroll, Deadline, 2 June 2026
Natera spares no detail depicting how the one percent vacations—and the incredible toll luxury tourism extracts from locales, environmentally, emotionally, and existentially.
—Literary Hub, 19 May 2026
Noun
The Fort Worth division of Lockheed Martin was also given a $17 million modification to an existing contract for provisioning spares.
—Maven Navarro
june 1, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 1 June 2026
And since no one expires from, say, cancer or other now-curable diseases, and bones and organs can be replaced like car parts with artificial spares, people only pass when involved in freak accidents…or take their own lives.
—Leslie Felperin, HollywoodReporter, 24 May 2026
White House officials defended the arrangement, arguing that donor anonymity is standard practice for major projects and that using private funds spares taxpayers.
—Daniel Cassady, ARTnews.com, 22 Apr. 2026
The contract covers full-rate production engines, initial spares, modules, engineering resources, program oversight and dedicated production support services, according to a release from RTX.
—Staff Report, Hartford Courant, 31 Mar. 2026
If a motor with a 12-week lead time breaks and there are no spares, downtime can result in customer attrition.
—Jeff Mahler, Forbes.com, 13 Mar. 2026
Palmeri’s dad, Tony, loved cars from the 1930s, and dual spares weren’t unusual to see on the sides of cars in that era.
—Eric D. Lawrence, Freep.com, 3 Mar. 2026
That means having standard spares available and maintenance procedures drawn up and tested.
—New Atlas, 17 Jan. 2026
Precision is necessary to pick up spares.
—Kirk Kenney, San Diego Union-Tribune, 25 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for spares
Verb
-
EPaper is a display technology—best known from the E Ink brand commercialized by E Ink Corporation and widely used in ereaders—that supports ultra-high pixel densities, reflects ambient light, remains readable in bright sunlight, and greatly conserves battery life.—
Tony Hoffman,
PC Magazine,
3 June 2026
-
This method conserves water, meets each plant's hydration needs, and prevents overwatering by eliminating human error such as forgetting to turn off the hose.—
SJ McShane,
Martha Stewart,
31 May 2026
Verb
-
Clark had a collection of par saves around the turn as Scottie Scheffler was making a move and poured it on with a fairway metal to get within four feet for eagle on the par-five 16th for an even-par 70 that gave him a six-shot lead.—
Doug Ferguson,
Los Angeles Times,
21 June 2026
-
Ecuador has shot more goals, and met opposition from Curaçao goalkeeper Eloy Room, credited with 3 saves so far.—
The Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
21 June 2026
Noun
-
His Five Forces framework—competitive rivalry, new entrants, substitutes, buyer power and supplier power—became the definitive lens for assessing whether an industry is worth entering.—
Peter Su,
Forbes.com,
20 June 2026
-
All four goals in this game have come from players who entered as substitutes.—
Andrew Greif,
NBC news,
19 June 2026
Verb
-
The restrictions apply to existing single-family homes, not new construction, a carveout that preserves incentives for financial firms to invest in new housing construction, the staffer noted.—
Mary Cunningham,
CBS News,
22 June 2026
-
Daniel Mendelsohn, the most recent translator of the Odyssey, preserves that scheme, writing a detailed, luxuriant, often beautiful line.—
David Denby,
New Yorker,
21 June 2026
Noun
-
More than 5,000 extras turned out.—
Linnea Wicklund,
Chicago Tribune,
19 June 2026
-
Not everyone wants cloud extras or an ongoing subscription just to access core desktop apps.—
StackCommerce Team,
PC Magazine,
18 June 2026
Noun
-
Battery pack replacements typically range from $5,000 to $20,000.—
Emily Mercer,
USA Today,
22 June 2026
-
In their place, Spain boss Luis de la Fuente somewhat bafflingly lined up Barcelona duo Ferrán Torres and Gavi as their replacements.—
Patrick Sung Cuadrado,
CNN Money,
21 June 2026
Noun
-
Twenty terabytes is enough for large photo collections, video projects, business archives, backups, and years of personal files.—
StackCommerce Team,
PC Magazine,
19 June 2026
-
The water behind walls, ceilings, and floors—drain backups that can impact multiple units.—
Marissa Sulek,
CBS News,
18 June 2026
Noun
-
Oil supplies may take time to recover, and countries that tapped strategic reserves during the crisis will need to replenish them, creating additional demand, Kates says.—
Mike Winters,
CNBC,
16 June 2026
-
Niger, which houses the world’s eighth-largest reserves of uranium, is not immune to this surge of violence.—
Kaitlyn Rabe,
The Conversation,
16 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Spares.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/spares. Accessed 24 Jun. 2026.
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