preservation
prez-er-VEY-shuhn
/ˌprezərˈveɪʃən/
The act or process of keeping something safe from harm, decay, loss, or destruction.
Focuses on maintaining the original state of historical sites, artifacts, or nature, preventing any alteration or deterioration.
The story behind the word. From the Latin 'praeservare,' where 'prae-' means 'beforehand' and 'servare' means 'to keep, guard, or protect.' Thus, preservation is the act of guarding something in advance to ensure it remains unharmed.
Word relationships
- conservation: Conservation implies the wise use and management of resources, while preservation implies keeping them completely untouched and in their original state.
- destruction: The act of ruining or demolishing something beyond repair.
Commonly confused with
- restoration: Restoration is the act of returning something damaged back to its former condition, while preservation is keeping it from getting damaged in the first place.
Word family
- preserve (verb): To keep safe from harm or decay.
- preservative (noun): A substance used to prevent decay.
Collocations
- historic preservation
- environmental preservation
- preservation efforts
- preservation of heritage
Example sentences
- "The historical society is dedicated to the preservation of the town's oldest wooden buildings." Protecting historical architecture
Memory hook
To 'preserve' is to 'pre-serve'—keeping it safe beforehand so it lasts forever. Keeping history frozen in time.
When not to use
Do not confuse with 'conservation,' which often allows for sustainable use and active management, whereas preservation emphasizes keeping things exactly as they are.
Fun facts
- The preservation of ancient Egyptian mummies was so successful that modern scientists can still extract DNA and reconstruct the faces of pharaohs who died over 3,000 years ago.
Explore more words
preserve, conserve, protect, conservation, restoration, save
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