[ti:Reserve, Preserve, and Conserve]
[al:Ask a Teacher]
[ar:VOA]
[dt:2023-02-11]
[by:www.voase.cn]
[00:00.00]Hello! This week on Ask a Teacher, we will answer a question about the difference between reserve, preserve, and conserve.
[00:14.62]Dear VOA Learning English,
[00:18.24]I have been learning English for more than twenty years, but my English is still just okay.
[00:27.06]I have many difficult words to understand. For example: reserve and preserve.
[00:35.93]Please let me know the difference between these words.
[00:40.16]Many thanks,
[00:41.78]Mei from China.
[00:45.42]Dear Mei,
[00:47.11]Thanks for your note.
[00:49.28]These words share similar meanings and sounds. 
[00:53.91]That makes it hard to remember which is which.
[00:58.23]I will add a third word, "conserve" so that we understand all the differences between these terms. 
[01:05.88]Let's start with "reserve."
[01:09.33]Reserve can be a verb or a noun.
[01:15.00]As a verb it means to store for future use.
[01:20.08]Please call the restaurant and reserve a table for Saturday.
[01:25.89]Emily reserved two books from the library.
[01:30.62]As a noun, "reserve" means a supply of goods or materials.
[01:37.85]It is often used in plural form.
[01:42.20]The government says it has only $25 million in usable foreign reserves.
[01:51.12]"Reserve" as a noun also means a place where wildlife is protected.
[01:58.83]Many national parks and forests in the US are nature reserves.
[02:06.57]And lastly, as an uncountable noun, "reserve" means the act of keeping one's feelings hidden.
[02:16.21]The dancer's reserve disappeared when the music started.
[02:21.55]"Preserve" as a verb means to protect something from change.
[02:27.83]The glass case helps preserve the pictures of her ancestors.
[02:33.39]Ed used a canning process to preserve tomatoes from the harvest.
[02:41.03]And, like reserve, a preserve can also mean a place of protection for wildlife.
[02:50.16]To "conserve" means to protect something from harm, destruction, loss, or change.
[02:58.78]We conserved on energy use by putting in new windows.
[03:04.77]Conserve also means to use little of a natural resource.
[03:10.93]To conserve water, you should turn off the faucet when brushing your teeth.
[03:17.53]And conserve can also be a noun. 
[03:22.18]It means a sweet food made by preserving fruit with sugar.
[03:27.52]Please let us know if these explanations and examples are helpful.
[03:33.33]We have more in reserve, if needed!
[03:37.60]What question do you have about American English? Send us an email at learningenglish@voanews.com
[03:48.82]And that's Ask a Teacher.
[03:52.20]I'm Faith Pirlo.