What's the difference between
and
Enter two words to compare and contrast their definitions, origins, and synonyms to better understand how those words are related.

Reserve vs Preserve - What's the difference?

reserve | preserve |

As nouns the difference between reserve and preserve

is that reserve is restriction while preserve is a sweet spread made of any of a variety of berries.

As verbs the difference between reserve and preserve

is that reserve is to keep back; to retain while preserve is to protect; to keep from harm or injury.

reserve

English

Noun

(en noun)
  • (label) Restriction.
  • # The act of reserving, or keeping back; reservation; exception.
  • .
  • # Restraint of freedom in words or actions; backwardness; caution in personal behavior.
  • That which is reserved, or kept back, as for future use.
  • # A natural resource known to exist but not currently exploited.
  • #*{{quote-magazine, date=2014-04-25, author= Martin Lukacs
  • , volume=190, issue=20, page=13, magazine=(The Guardian Weekly) , title= Canada becoming launch-pad of a global tar sands and oil shale frenzy , passage=If Alberta’s reserves are a carbon bomb, this global expansion of tar sands and oil shale exploitation amounts to an escalating emissions arms race, the unlocking of a subterranean cache of weapons of mass ecological destruction.}}
  • # A tract of land reserved, or set apart, for a particular purpose; as, the Connecticut Reserve in Ohio, originally set apart for the school fund of Connecticut; the Clergy Reserves in Canada, for the support of the clergy.
  • # (label) A tract of land set apart for the use of an Aboriginal group; Indian reserve (compare US (reservation).)
  • # (label) A body of troops kept in the rear of an army drawn up for battle, reserved to support the other lines as occasion may require; a force or body of troops kept for an exigency.
  • # (label) Funds kept on hand to meet planned or unplanned financial requirements.
  • # Wine held back and aged before being sold.
  • (label) Something initially kept back for later use in a recreation.
  • # (label) A member of a team who does not participate from the start of the game, but can be used to replace tired or injured team-mates.
  • # (label) A group or pile of cards dealt out at the beginning of a patience or solitaire game to be used during play.
  • Synonyms

    * reservation, res * (restraint of freedom in words or actions) self-restraint, reticence, taciturnity * substitute * (tract of land for Aboriginal peoples) rez

    Derived terms

    * Federal Reserve * Federal Reserve System * nature reserve * reserve bank * reserve price * wildlife reserve

    Verb

  • To keep back; to retain.
  • We reserve the right to make modifications.
  • To keep in store for future or special use.
  • This cake is reserved for the guests!
  • * Jonathan Swift
  • Reserve your kind looks and language for private hours.
  • To book in advance; to make a reservation.
  • I reserved a table for us at the best restaurant in town.
  • (obsolete) To make an exception of; to except.
  • Anagrams

    * * * ----

    preserve

    English

    Alternative forms

    * (archaic)

    Noun

  • A sweet spread made of any of a variety of berries.
  • A reservation, a nature preserve.
  • *1881 , :
  • *:Suppose Shakespeare had been knocked on the head some dark night in preserves , the world would have wagged on better or worse, the pitcher gone to the well, the scythe to the corn, and the student to his book; and no one been any the wiser of the loss.
  • An activity with restricted access.
  • * {{quote-magazine, date=2013-06-22, volume=407, issue=8841, page=68, magazine=(The Economist)
  • , title= T time , passage=The ability to shift profits to low-tax countries by locating intellectual property in them, which is then licensed to related businesses in high-tax countries, is often assumed to be the preserve of high-tech companies.}}

    Usage notes

    More often used in the plural, as strawberry preserves'', but the form without the ''-s can also be used as the plural form, or to refer to a single type.

    Synonyms

    * jam * jelly * marmalade

    See also

    * preserver

    Verb

    (preserv)
  • To protect; to keep from harm or injury.
  • * Shakespeare
  • Now, good angels preserve the king.
  • * (Yuri Gagarin)
  • Orbiting Earth in the spaceship, I saw how beautiful our planet is. People, let us preserve and increase this beauty, not destroy it.
  • To save from decay by the use of some preservative substance, such as as sugar or salt; to season and prepare (fruits, meat, etc.) for storage.
  • to preserve peaches or grapes
  • To maintain throughout; to keep intact.
  • to preserve''' appearances; to '''preserve silence

    Anagrams

    * perverse ----