reserve Hear it!

reserve Definition

re·serve (ri zʉrv′)

transitive verb -·served′, -·serv′·ing

  1. to keep back, store up, or set apart for later use or for some special purpose
  2. to hold over to a later time
  3. to set aside or have set aside for a special person, etc. to reserve a theater seat
  4. to keep back or retain for oneself to reserve the right to refuse

Etymology: ME reserven < OFr reserver < L reservare < re-, back + servare: see observe

noun

  1. something kept back or stored up, as for later use or for a special purpose
  2. a limitation or reservation: now rare except in without reserve (see phrase below)
  3. the practice of keeping one's thoughts, feelings, etc. to oneself; self-restraint or aloofness in speech and manner
  4. reticence; silence
  5. restraint and control in artistic expression; freedom from exaggeration or extravagance
    1. available participants kept out of action for use in an emergency or for replacing active groups or units, as in sports or warfare
    2. personnel or units in the armed forces not on active duty but subject to call; militia: with the
  7. cash, or assets readily turned into cash, held out of use by a bank, insurance company, or business to meet expected or unexpected demands
  8. ☆ land set apart for a special purpose a forest reserve

adjective

being, or having the nature of, a reserve or reserves a reserve supply

  • re-serve

reserve Idioms

in reserve

reserved for later use or for some person

without reserve

  1. subject to no limitation
  2. without any minimum or asking price: said of goods offered at auction

reserve Synonyms

reserve

n.

  1. A portion kept against emergencies

    savings, insurance, resources, reserved funds, store, stock, provisions, assets, supply, hoard, backlog, nest egg, cache, stockpile, something for a rainy day*.

  2. Calmness

    reticence, restraint, constraint, backwardness, modesty, unresponsiveness, uncommunicativeness, caution, inhibition, coyness, demureness, aloofness, formality, remoteness, guardedness.

  3. A reserve player

    substitute, second-string player, alternate, sub*, second-stringer*, bench polisher*, scrub*. *

  4. Unexpected fund

    sinking fund, funded reserve, government securities, negotiable bonds, floating assets; see also resources, wealth 1.

  5. Land set apart for a special purpose

    preserve, reservation, sanctuary; see park 1, refuge 1.

in reserve

reserved, withheld, set aside, kept back, withdrawn, out of circulation, in stock, in store, in readiness, waiting, ready, kept back, kept aside, saved; see also kept 2, reserved 2.

reserve Synonyms

reserve

v.

  1. To save

    store up, set aside, put away; see maintain 3, save 3, store.

  2. To retain

    keep, possess, have; see hold 1, own 1.

  3. To engage ahead of time

    book, bespeak, arrange for; see hire 1, maintain 3.

reserve Law Definition

n

An amount of money or assets set aside against future unrealized risks; monies set aside by insurance companies to pay losses that have not yet been asserted or finalized. 

reserve Usage Examples

Object

  • right: We reserve the right to reject any ad without giving a reason.
  • seat: Compartments are reserved for all group bookings; groups are asked to travel together in the seats reserved for them.
  • judgment: Still we have a year to develop ours now so I will reserve judgment.

Converse of object

declare: At the north end of Kielder Water, Bakethin Reservoir has been declared a nature reserve.

Adjective modifier

  • recoverable: The fields are estimated to contain recoverable reserves of 350 to 400 billion cubic feet.
  • probable: Estimated gross proven and probable recoverable reserves for the field are currently 15.2 million barrels of oil.
  • marine: Divers visiting Kenya typically dive in one of four large marine reserves.
  • proven: The area is one of two leading Iraqi oil sites with more than 10 billion barrels of proven reserves, analysts say.
  • investegate: Investegate reserves the right to publish a filtered set of announcements.
  • foreign: An important portion of these flows stems from the foreign reserves of the Asian central banks.

Modifies a noun

  • currency: How long will they continue to hold US dollars as their reserve currency?
  • champion: We had a argument last year over the bird he wanted to take and he won reserve champion.
  • parachute: I do have a reserve parachute, but doubt there would have been time to deploy it.

Noun used with modifier

  • nature: The old length of canal will then become a nature reserve.
  • biosphere: S couples preachers music not to chinchorro biosphere reserve foreigners get the.
  • oil: The task of estimating the amount of oil reserves is complex.
  • wetland: This morning we'll take a short drive to a wetland reserve just outside the capital on the coast.
  • wildlife: Thailand has 16 % of its total area under national parks and wildlife reserves.
  • coal: The Prince Bishops continued to be major investors in and exploiters of County Durham's coal reserves.

Preposition: of

barrel: PDN has proven and probable reserves of 6.9 million barrels ( net to its interests ).