Synonyms/Hypernyms (Ordered by Estimated Frequency) of verb spare

4 senses of spare

Sense 1
spare, save -- (refrain from harming)
       => refrain, forbear -- (resist doing something; "He refrained from hitting him back"; "she could not forbear weeping")

Sense 2
spare -- (save or relieve from an experience or action; "I'll spare you from having to apologize formally")
       => exempt, relieve, free -- (grant relief or an exemption from a rule or requirement to; "She exempted me from the exam")

Sense 3
spare, give up, part with, dispense with -- (give up what is not strictly needed; "he asked if they could spare one of their horses to speed his journey")
       => give -- (transfer possession of something concrete or abstract to somebody; "I gave her my money"; "can you give me lessons?"; "She gave the children lots of love and tender loving care")

Sense 4
spare -- (use frugally or carefully)
       => use, expend -- (use up, consume fully; "The legislature expended its time on school questions")

Antonyms of adj sparing

1 sense of sparing

Sense 1
economical, frugal, scotch, sparing, stinting -- (avoiding waste; "an economical meal"; "an economical shopper"; "a frugal farmer"; "a frugal lunch"; "a sparing father and a spending son"; "sparing in their use of heat and light"; "stinting in bestowing gifts"; "thrifty because they remember the great Depression"; "`scotch' is used only informally")

INDIRECT (VIA thrifty) -> wasteful -- (tending to squander and waste)

Similarity of adj sparing

1 sense of sparing

Sense 1
economical, frugal, scotch, sparing, stinting -- (avoiding waste; "an economical meal"; "an economical shopper"; "a frugal farmer"; "a frugal lunch"; "a sparing father and a spending son"; "sparing in their use of heat and light"; "stinting in bestowing gifts"; "thrifty because they remember the great Depression"; "`scotch' is used only informally")
       => thrifty (vs. wasteful) -- (careful and diligent in the use of resources)