preserved
Americanadjective
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(of food or any perishable substance) prepared by canning, pickling, salting, or the like, or treated by some process to prevent decomposition or fermentation.
I had never had such fresh-tasting preserved fruit before.
-
kept safe from harm or injury; protected or spared.
This is a wonderfully preserved example of Mayan cave art.
-
kept up or maintained; kept in good condition or health.
Tucked in Amsterdam’s inner city is a uniquely preserved 17th-century house from the Dutch Golden Age.
-
kept alive or in existence.
When I take a portrait photograph, I’m capturing a moment in a life, making it a preserved memory.
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(of game or fish, natural habitats, etc.) maintained or reserved for continued hunting or fishing, or for private or public use and appreciation.
New walking trails will be built through the preserved areas of parkland.
verb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of preserved
First recorded in 1550–60; preserve ( def. ) + -ed 2 ( def. ) for the adjective senses; preserve ( def. ) + -ed 1 ( def. ) for the verb sense
Explanation
Something that's preserved is kept in its original state or kept alive and fresh. Preserved artifacts are protected from damage, often in a museum where they can be kept safe. Preserved food is treated in some way that makes it spoil much more slowly than it would otherwise. Sometimes this is done by adding chemical preservatives, and other times it's a more natural process, involving drying, pickling, salting, or canning. Preserved fruit, cooked with sugar and sealed in jars, is also called preserves. These words all stem from the Medieval Latin preservare, "keep safe."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
A substantial portion of the story has been preserved, including the hero's return to Ithaca.
From BBC ● Jul. 23, 2026
The special online collection is preserved by LMU’s William H. Hannon Library, but all donors are given the option to retain the copyright of their personal photos.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2026
It’s a gap that Congress has deliberately preserved for First Amendment reasons.
From Salon ● Jul. 23, 2026
After reviewing more than 20 years of stranding records and preserved tissue samples, researchers at Florida Atlantic University's Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute and collaborating institutions identified three Helicobacter genotypes that had never been documented before.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 21, 2026
The park sustained them, the green harbor they preserved as the town extended itself outward, block by block and house by house.
From "The Underground Railroad: A Novel" by Colson Whitehead
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
