Synonyms of sparing

sparing 1 of 2

adjective

ˈsper-iŋ 

1

as in economical

careful in the management of money or resources

a sparing couple who are trying to save up enough for a house

Synonyms & Similar Words

• economical
• saving
• economizing
• conserving
• prudent
• preserving
• provident
• thrifty
• frugal
• scrimping
• cheap
• spare
• pinching
• close
• foresighted
• forehanded
• parsimonious
• miserly
• stingy
• mean
• penny-wise
• tightfisted
• tight
• foresightful
• stinting
• penurious
• penny-pinching
• closefisted

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• wasteful
• profligate
• prodigal
• spendthrift
• unthrifty
• generous
• squandering
• improvident
• shortsighted
• liberal
• charitable
• bountiful
• unselfish
• munificent
• unsparing
• thriftless
• lavish
• extravagant
• indulgent
• openhanded
• freehanded

2

as in careful

giving or sharing as little as possible

a government agency that has always been sparing of public information

Synonyms & Similar Words

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

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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

3

as in sparse

less plentiful than what is normal, necessary, or desirable

unfortunately, the explanation of the health insurance plan was somewhat sparing on details

Synonyms & Similar Words

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

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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

sparing

2 of 2

verb

present participle of spare

1

as in conserving

to use or give out in stingy amounts

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

Synonyms & Similar Words

• conserving
• preserving
• skimping (on)
• scanting
• nursing
• stinting (on)
• shortchanging
• pinching
• doling out
• meting (out)
• rationing (out)
• portioning (out)

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• pouring
• showering
• raining
• heaping
• lavishing

2

as in saving

to avoid unnecessary waste or expense

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

Synonyms & Similar Words

• saving
• conserving
• economizing
• managing
• preserving
• skimping
• scrimping
• pinching
• scraping
• maintaining
• pinching pennies
• husbanding
• cutting down
• hoarding
• cutting back
• retrenching
• laying up

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• wasting
• spending
• blowing
• squandering
• lavishing
• dissipating
• running through
• throwing away
• frittering (away)
• misspending
• splurging

Synonym Chooser

How is the word sparing distinct from other similar adjectives?

Some common synonyms of sparing are economical, frugal, and thrifty. While all these words mean "careful in the use of one's money or resources," sparing stresses abstention and restraint.

sparing in the offering of advice

When might economical be a better fit than sparing?

Although the words economical and sparing have much in common, economical stresses prudent management, lack of wastefulness, and use of things to their best advantage.

an economical health-care plan

When can frugal be used instead of sparing?

In some situations, the words frugal and sparing are roughly equivalent. However, frugal implies absence of luxury and simplicity of lifestyle.

ran a frugal household

Where would thrifty be a reasonable alternative to sparing?

While in some cases nearly identical to sparing, thrifty stresses good management and industry.

thrifty use of nonrenewable resources

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of sparing

Adjective

In other cases, the redactions were more sparing. — Joe Walsh, CBS News, 19 Dec. 2025

Verb

Ultrasound scans could make that work more precise while sparing the coral from an untimely dissection. — Mack Degeurin, Popular Science, 6 Nov. 2026

In some cases, Pets Best can also pay your vet directly, sparing you a large upfront bill. — Matt Richardson, CBS News, 2 Nov. 2026

That would let the Bears build on land that is or would become publicly owned, sparing the stadium from property taxes. — Robert McCoppin, Chicago Tribune, 29 Oct. 2026

McBride was the first person in the tri-state area to undergo a a robotic nipple-sparing mastectomy. — Wendy Grossman Kantor, PEOPLE, 29 Oct. 2026

Helner believes that sparing Sinwar’s life was a catastrophic mistake. — Eric Cortellessa, Time, 26 Oct. 2026

The HomeView can also share intercom-style broadcasts to any other room equipped with smart speakers, sparing you the need to yell up the stairs when dinner is ready. — Julia Harrison, Architectural Digest, 13 Oct. 2026

Chee is sparing of physical detail but unsparing in dissecting the social and psychological dynamics of abuse. — Garth Greenwell, New Yorker, 6 Oct. 2026

The same tools that help scientists design a drug that targets cancer cells while sparing healthy ones can be tweaked to build a drug that targets healthy cells alone. — Ashish K. Jha, STAT, 28 Sep. 2026