English
spare
Spare comes from Old English spær ‘sparing, scant’, from Proto-Indo-European *sph₁rós ‘thriving’, and ultimately from *speh₁- ‘to succeed, to prosper’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*speh₁-‘to succeed, to prosper’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*sph₁rós‘thriving’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*sparaz‘sparing, frugal’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150spær‘sparing, scant’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500spare
- Englishearliest quotation 1590same form
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*speh₁-‘to succeed, to prosper’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*sph₁rós‘thriving’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*sparaz‘sparing, frugal’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150spær‘sparing, scant’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500spare
- Englishearliest quotation 1590same form
Earliest quotation: 1590, Edmund Spenser, Book I, Canto X: “if that no spare cloths he had to give”.
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *speh₁- ‘to succeed, to prosper’
speed, desperate, desperation, despair, spatial, prosper, spat, esperanza, desperado, esperance, 4 more
Another origin of spare
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sper-‘to be productive, earn’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*sparōną‘to save, keep, spare’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150sparian‘to spare, show mercy to, refrain from injuring or destroying’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500sparen
- Englishtodayspare
Today it means
adj Being more than what is necessary, or what must be used or reserved; not wanted, or not used; superfluous.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *speh₁- / spare