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Preserve Preserved Anxious Sense Perfectly House Original Preserves

Word preserve
WordType (verb)
Phonetic BrE / prɪˈzɜːv / NAmE / prɪˈzɜːrv /
Example
  • he was anxious to preserve his reputation.
  • efforts to preserve the peace have failed.
  • she managed to preserve her sense of humour under very trying circumstances.
  • a perfectly preserved 14th century house
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Content

preserve

(verb)BrE / prɪˈzɜːv / NAmE / prɪˈzɜːrv /
  1. to keep a particular quality, feature, etc.; to make sure that something is kept
    • He was anxious to preserve his reputation.
    • Efforts to preserve the peace have failed.
    • She managed to preserve her sense of humour under very trying circumstances.
  2. to keep something in its original state in good condition
    • a perfectly preserved 14th century house
    • Is he really 60? He's remarkably well preserved.
    • This vase has been preserved intact.
  3. to prevent something, especially food, from decaying by treating it in a particular way
    • olives preserved in brine
    • Wax polish preserves wood and leather.
  4. to keep somebody/something alive, or safe from harm or danger
    • synonym save
      https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/save_1
    • The society was set up to preserve endangered species from extinction.

    Extra Examples

    • She carefully preserved all his letters.
    • The Act contained provisions designed to preserve the status quo.
    • The bones had all been preserved intact.
    • The collection has been sold to the British Museum where it will be preserved for the nation.
    • The iron coins are poorly preserved and have rusted.
    • The prison is preserved as a tourist attraction.
    • The style of the original film is preserved perfectly.
    • They were thrilled to discover a beautifully preserved specimen of Roman pottery.
    • We need to take action to help preserve fish stocks.
    • We were anxious to preserve the original character of the house.
    • You need to say why the building is worth preserving.
    • an attempt to preserve the corpse from decomposition
    • campaigners fighting to preserve a historic building
    • taking action to help preserve fish stocks
    • Is he really 60? He’s remarkably well preserved.
    • She wanted to preserve him from harassment.
    • She was determined to preserve her independence and way of life.
    • The National Trust preserves the house and its grounds.
    • Three miles away is a perfectly preserved stretch of Roman road.
    • To preserve life should always be the goal.

    Verb Forms

    • present simple I / you / we / they preserve
    • he / she / it preserves
    • past simple preserved
    • past participle preserved
    • -ing form preserving

    Word Origin

    • late Middle English (in the sense ‘keep safe from harm’): from Old French preserver, from late Latin praeservare, from prae- ‘before, in advance’ + servare ‘to keep’.
Copyright This card's content is collected from the following dictionaries: Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

Tags: p

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