| 释义 |
spare adjective /speə(r)/ /sper/ Idioms jump to other results time available to do what you want with rather than work- He's studying music in his spare time.
- I haven't had a spare moment this morning.
Topics Hobbiesb2 not used/needed [usually before noun] that is not being used or is not needed at the present time- We've got a spare bedroom, if you'd like to stay.
- I'm afraid I haven't got any spare cash.
- Are there any tickets going spare (= are there any available, not being used by somebody else)?
extra [only before noun] kept in case you need to replace the one you usually use; extra- a spare key/tyre
- Take some spare clothes in case you get wet.
person- thin, and usually quite tall
Word OriginOld English spær ‘not plentiful, meagre’, sparian ‘refrain from injuring’, ‘refrain from using’, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch and German sparen ‘to spare’. Idioms - (British English, informal) to become very angry or upset
- Your mum would go spare if she knew!
- I’ll go spare if I don’t get out of the house soon!
Topics Feelingsc2
spare verb /speə(r)/ /sper/ Idioms jump to other results time/money/room/thought, etc. to make something such as time or money available to somebody or for something, especially when it requires an effort for you to do this- spare something/somebody I'd love to have a break, but I can't spare the time just now.
- spare something/somebody to do something Could you spare one of your staff to help us out?
- spare something/somebody for somebody/something We can only spare one room for you.
- You should spare a thought for (= think about) the person who cleans up after you.
- He was late, but he spared a glance for the pretty girl at the desk.
- spare somebody something Surely you can spare me a few minutes?
Extra Examples- Can you spare a second to give me a hand?
- Can you spare some money for the homeless?
- She hardly spared him a second glance.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverbverb + spareprepositionphrasesSee full entry save somebody pain/trouble to save somebody/yourself from having to go through an unpleasant experience- spare somebody/yourself something He wanted to spare his mother any anxiety.
- Please spare me (= do not tell me) the gruesome details.
- You could have spared yourself an unnecessary trip by phoning in advance.
- spare somebody/yourself from something She was spared from the ordeal of appearing in court.
not harm/damage (formal) to allow somebody/something to escape harm, damage or death, especially when others do not escape it- spare somebody/something They killed the men but spared the children.
- She begged them to spare her life.
- During the bombing only one house was spared (= was not hit by a bomb).
- The storm largely spared Houston and surrounding districts.
- spare somebody/something from something The children were spared from the virus.
- spare somebody/something sth Hong Kong was spared a direct hit, but the storm still brought heavy rains and powerful winds.
Oxford Collocations DictionaryadverbprepositionSee full entry no effort/expense, etc. spare no effort, expense, etc. to do everything possible to achieve something or to do something well without trying to limit the time or money involved- He spared no effort to make her happy again.
- No expense was spared in furnishing the new office.
work hard- not spare yourself to work as hard as possible
Word OriginOld English spær ‘not plentiful, meagre’, sparian ‘refrain from injuring’, ‘refrain from using’, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch and German sparen ‘to spare’. Idioms - (British English) to save somebody from an embarrassing situation
- A last minute goal spared their blushes.
spare somebody’s feelings - to be careful not to do or say anything that might upset somebody
- I kept off the subject of divorce so as to spare her feelings.
- if you have time, money, etc. to spare, you have more than you need
- I've got absolutely no money to spare this month.
- We arrived at the airport with five minutes to spare.
Extra Examples- We should get there with half an hour to spare.
- Have you any money to spare?
spare noun /speə(r)/ /sper/ jump to other results - an extra thing that you keep in case you need to replace the one you usually use (used especially about a tyre of a car)
- to get the spare out of the boot/trunk
- I've lost my key and I haven't got a spare.
spares [plural] (especially British English) spare parts (= new parts that you buy to replace old or broken parts of a car, machine, etc.)- It can be difficult to get spares for some older makes of car.
Word OriginOld English spær ‘not plentiful, meagre’, sparian ‘refrain from injuring’, ‘refrain from using’, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch and German sparen ‘to spare’.
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