Word forms: plural, 3rd person singular presenttense saves, present participle saving, past tense, past participle saved
1. verb
If you save someone or something, you help them to avoid harm or to escape from a dangerous or unpleasant situation.
...a final attempt to save 40,000 jobs in the troubled aero industry. [VERB noun]
One man was still missing last night after the Belgian trawler Lucky capsized offthe Dutch coast. Three other men were saved. [VERB noun]
A new machine no bigger than a 10p piece could help save babies from cot death. [VERB noun + from]
The performance may have saved him from being eliminated. [VERB noun + from]
Synonyms: protect, keep, guard, preserve More Synonyms of save
-savingcombining form
His boxing career was ended after two sight-saving operations.
2. verb
If you save, you gradually collect money by spending less than you get, usually in order to buy something that you want.
Most people intend to save, but find that by the end of the month there is nothingleft. [VERB]
Tim and Barbara are now saving for a house in the suburbs. [VERB + for]
They could not find any way to save money. [VERB noun]
Save up means the same as save.
Julie wanted to save up something for a holiday. [VERBPARTICLE + for]
People often put money aside to save up enough to make one major expenditure. [VERBPARTICLE noun]
[Also VERB noun PARTICLE]
3. verb
If you save something such as time or money, you prevent the loss or waste of it.
It saves time in the kitchen to have things you use a lot within reach. [VERB noun]
More cash will be saved by shutting studios and selling outside-broadcast vehicles. [VERB noun]
I'll try to save him the expense of a flight from Perth. [VERB noun noun]
I got the fishmonger to skin the fish which helped save on the preparation time. [VERB + on]
[Also V n on n]
-savingcombining form
...labor-saving devices.
4. verb
If you save something, you keep it because it will be needed later.
Drain the beans thoroughly and save the stock for soup. [VERB noun]
Scraps of material were saved, cut up and pieced together for quilts. [VERB noun]
[Also VERB noun noun]
Synonyms: put aside, keep, reserve, collect More Synonyms of save
5. verb
If someone or something saves you from an unpleasant action or experience, they change the situation so that you do not have to do it or experience it.
The scanner will save risk and pain for patients. [VERB noun]
She was hoping that something might save her from having to make a decision. [VERB noun + from]
He arranges to collect the payment from the customer, thus saving the client thepaperwork. [VERB noun noun]
6. verb
If you save data in a computer, you give the computer an instruction to store the data on a tape or disk.
[computing]
Try to get into the habit of saving your work regularly. [VERB noun]
Import your scanned images from the scanner and save as a JPG file. [VERB + as]
7. verb
If a goalkeeper saves, or saves a shot, they succeed in preventing the ball from going into the goal.
He saved one shot when the ball hit him on the head. [VERB noun]
[Also VERB]
Save is also a noun.
Their keeper made an unbelievable save at the end.
8. preposition
You can use save to introduce the only things, people, or ideas that your main statement does not apply to.
[formal]
There is almost no water at all in the area save that brought up from bore holes.
See save for
9. to save someone's bacon
10. to save the day
11. to save face
Phrasal verbs:
See save up
More Synonyms of save
save in British English1
(seɪv)
verb
1. (transitive)
to rescue, preserve, or guard (a person or thing) from danger or harm
2.
to avoid the spending, waste, or loss of (money, possessions, etc)
3. (transitive)
to deliver from sin; redeem
4. (often foll by up)
to set aside or reserve (money, goods, etc) for future use
5. (transitive)
to treat with care so as to avoid or lessen wear or degeneration
use a good light to save your eyes
6. (transitive)
to prevent the necessity for; obviate the trouble of
good work now will save future revision
7. (transitive) sport
to prevent (a goal) by stopping (a struck ball or puck)
8. (intransitive) mainly US
(of food) to admit of preservation; keep
noun
9. sport
the act of saving a goal
10. computing
an instruction to write information from the memory onto a tape or disk
Derived forms
savable (ˈsavable) or saveable (ˈsaveable)
adjective
savableness (ˈsavableness) or saveableness (ˈsaveableness)
noun
saver (ˈsaver)
noun
Word origin
C13: from Old French salver, via Late Latin from Latin salvus safe
save in British English2
(seɪv) archaic or literary
preposition
1. Also: saving(often foll by for)
with the exception of
conjunction
2.
but; except
Word origin
C13 sauf, from Old French, from Latin salvō, from salvus safe
save in American English1
(seɪv)
verb transitiveWord forms: saved or ˈsaving
1.
to rescue or preserve from harm, danger, injury, etc.; make or keep safe
2.
to keep in health and well-being
now only in certain formulas
God save the king!
3.
to preserve for future use; lay by
often with up
4.
to prevent or guard against loss or waste of
to save time, to save a game
5.
to avoid, prevent, lessen, or guard against
to save wear and tear
6.
to treat or use carefully in order to preserve, lessen wear, etc.
7. Computing
to copy (data, a file, etc.) from random-access memory to a disk, tape, etc. for storage
8. Theology
to deliver from sin and its penalties
verb intransitive
9.
to avoid expense, loss, waste, etc.; be economical
10.
to keep something or someone from danger, harm, etc.
11.
to put by money or goods; hoard
often with up
12.
to keep; last
13. Theology
to bring about deliverance from sin and its penalties
noun
14. Sport
an action that keeps an opponent from scoring or winning
15. US, Baseball
the preserving of a team's lead by a relief pitcher in the final inning
SIMILAR WORDS: ˈrescue
Derived forms
savable (ˈsavable)
adjective or ˈsaveable
saver (ˈsaver)
noun
Word origin
ME saven < OFr sauver, salver < L salvare < salvus, safe
save in American English2
(seɪv)
preposition
1.
except; but
conjunction
2.
except; but
3. Archaic
unless
Word origin
ME sauf < OFr, lit., safe: sense developed from use in absolute constructions, e.g. sauf le droit, right (being) safe
More idioms containing
save
save face
save for a rainy day
save someone's bacon
someone can't do something to save their life
save your own skin
Examples of 'save' in a sentence
save
Such lack of detail also saves the band from giving away too much about themselves.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
She said the money should be used to save services facing cuts.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
You can set up different goals for your saved cash.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
This in turn would hurt the very people trying to save more.
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
We are not saving money any more and most of the ideas are a false economy.
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
Two strangers must work together to save their lives after being targeted by a mysterious female caller.
The Sun (2009)
To save and preserve one small laundry consumed hours and hours of endeavour.
Rowbotham, Sheila The Past is Before Us - feminism in action since the 1960s (1989)
The need for action to save the planet has become urgent.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
The expedition that had taken us years to save and collect sponsorship for was over.
The Sun (2007)
Then she saved something extra for the finish.
Frankie Dettori with Jonathan Powell FRANKIE: The Autobiography of Frankie Dettori (2004)
This can save a lot of lives.
The Sun (2013)
They keep well and can save time when preparing and cooking a meal.
Chapman, C. & Horsley, M. & Small, E. Technology Basic Facts (1990)
They both had one kick to save the world.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
The room is almost empty save for the niches cut into the walls.
Christianity Today (2000)
Increased efficiency will also save you money as fuel bills soar.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
How much thinking those old gentlemen used to save one!
Kishlansky, Mark A. (editor) Sources of the West: Readings in Western Civilization, Volume 1: From the Beginningto 1715 (1995)
So unlucky with second goal after saving penalty.
The Sun (2014)
This was followed shortly by his brilliant save to deny the Scottish striker.
The Sun (2012)
There was no doubting his sharpness as he pulled off a string of fine first-half saves.
The Sun (2015)
Save in exceptional circumstances, it should not be necessary for the court to engage in a detailed review of the facts.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
In other languages
save
British English: save /seɪv/ VERB
rescue If you save someone or something, you help them to escape from danger.
He saved the boy from drowning.
American English: save
Arabic: يُنْقِذُ يدخر
Brazilian Portuguese: salvar
Chinese: 救
Croatian: spasiti
Czech: zachránit
Danish: redde
Dutch: redden
European Spanish: salvar
Finnish: pelastaa
French: sauver
German: retten
Greek: σώζω
Italian: salvare
Japanese: 救う
Korean: 구해주다
Norwegian: spare
Polish: uratować
European Portuguese: salvar
Romanian: a salva
Russian: сохранять
Latin American Spanish: salvar
Swedish: spara
Thai: ช่วยชีวิต
Turkish: kurtarmak
Ukrainian: рятувати
Vietnamese: cứu
British English: save /seɪv/ VERB
money If you save something, you keep it because you will need it later.
She was saving her money.
American English: save
Arabic: يُوَفِّرُ
Brazilian Portuguese: poupar
Chinese: 节约
Croatian: štedjeti
Czech: schovat sina později
Danish: spare op
Dutch: opsparen
European Spanish: ahorrar
Finnish: säästää
French: garderpour plus tard
German: sparen
Greek: αποθηκεύω
Italian: conservare
Japanese: ･･･を蓄える
Korean: 저축하다
Norwegian: spare
Polish: oszczędzać
European Portuguese: poupar
Romanian: a păstra
Russian: сохранить
Latin American Spanish: guardar
Swedish: spara
Thai: เก็บไว้
Turkish: biriktirmek
Ukrainian: зберігати
Vietnamese: tiết kiệm
All related terms of 'save'
save up
save-all
a device to prevent waste or loss
save face
to do something so that people continue to respect you and your reputation is not damaged
save for
Save for means the same as → save .
save jobs
A job is the work that someone does to earn money.
save energy
Energy is the power from sources such as electricity and coal that makes machines work or provides heat.
save as you earn
(in Britain) a savings scheme which offers a tax-free bonus and allows employees to buy shares in the company they work for at a fixed price
save one's breath
to refrain from useless talk
save one's neck
to escape from a difficult or dangerous situation
save one's skin
to avoid harm or injury; esp., to escape death
save shoe leather
to avoid wearing out shoes , as by taking a bus rather than walking
to save the day
If someone or something saves the day in a situation which seems likely to fail , they manage to make it successful .
save someone's bacon
to get someone out of a dangerous or difficult situation
save someone's neck
to help someone else escape from such a situation
save your own skin
to try to save yourself from something dangerous or unpleasant , often without caring what happens to anyone else
to save one's life
If you say that someone cannot do something to save their life , you are emphasizing that they do it very badly.
(God) save the mark!
an exclamation of humorous astonishment , irony , contempt, etc.
save for a rainy day
to save some of your money in case there are serious problems in the future
Save the Children Fund
a development agency which raises money for deprived children around the world
to save someone's bacon
If someone or something saves your bacon , they get you out of a dangerous or difficult situation.
to lose face to save face
If you lose face , you do something which makes you appear weak and makes people respect or admire you less. If you do something in order to save face , you do it in order to avoid appearing weak and losing people's respect or admiration .
save one's own neck/save sb's neck
To save someone's neck means to prevent them from losing their job or harming their reputation .
save one's own skin/save one's skin
If you try to save your own skin or save your skin , you try to save yourself from something dangerous or unpleasant .
to spare someone's blushes save sb's blushes
If you spare someone's blushes or save someone's blushes , you avoid doing or saying something that will embarrass them.
face
Your face is the front part of your head from your chin to the top of your forehead, where your mouth, eyes, nose , and other features are.
spare someone's blushes
to do something that prevents someone from being in an embarrassing situation
someone can't do something to save their life
said to mean that someone cannot do something at all
to save sb from sth挽救某人免于(於)某事 (wǎnjiù mǒurén miǎn yú mǒushì)
to save sb's life挽救某人的生命 (wǎnjiù mǒurén de shēngmìng)
to save (up) for sth为(為)某物储(儲)蓄 (wèi mǒuwù chǔxù)
to save sb/o.s. some work/time/expense对(對)某人/自己来(來)说(說)省事/节(節)省时(時)间(間)/节(節)省开(開)支 (duì mǒurén/zìjǐ lái shuō shěngshì/jiéshěng shíjiān/jiéshěng kāizhī)
to save sth for sth为(為)某事留某物 (wèi mǒushì liú mǒuwù)
to save sb from doing sth使某人免于(於)做某事 (shǐ mǒurén miǎn yú zuò mǒushì)
God save the Queen!上帝保佑(祐)女王！ (Shàngdì bǎoyòu nǚwáng!)
to make a save (Sport) 救球 (jiù qiú)
All related terms of 'save'
save up
积(積)攒(攢) jīzǎn
to make a save
( Sport ) 救球 jiù qiú
God save the Queen!
上帝保佑(祐)女王！ Shàngdì bǎoyòu nǚwáng!
to lose/save face
丢(丟)/挽回面子 diū/wǎnhuí miànzi
to save sb's life
挽救某人的生命 wǎnjiù mǒurén de shēngmìng
to save sb from sth
挽救某人免于(於)某事 wǎnjiù mǒurén miǎn yú mǒushì
to save sth for sth
为(為)某事留某物 wèi mǒushì liú mǒuwù
it is difficult to save
省钱(錢)是件难(難)事 shěngqián shì jiàn nánshì
to save sb from doing sth
使某人免于(於)做某事 shǐ mǒurén miǎn yú zuò mǒushì
to save sth for a rainy day
存储(儲)某物以备(備)不时(時)之需 cúnchǔ mǒuwù yǐ bèi bù shí zhī xū