reserve

Etymology

From Old French reserver.

noun

1. A restriction.
   1. The act of reserving or keeping back; reservation; exception.
      The book is on reserve.
      I accept your view with one reserve.
   2. Restraint of freedom in words or actions; backwardness; caution in personal behavior.
2. That which is reserved or kept back, as for future use.
   1. A natural resource known to exist but not currently exploited.
      New oil reserves are continuously being discovered, but not as fast as the existing ones are running out.
      If Alberta’s reserves are a carbon bomb, this global expansion of tar sands and oil shale exploitation amounts to an escalating emissions arms race, the unlocking of a subterranean cache of weapons of mass ecological destruction. 2014-04-25, Martin Lukacs, “Canada becoming launch-pad of a global tar sands and oil shale frenzy”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 190, number 20, page 13
   2. A tract of land reserved, or set apart, for a particular purpose
      the Connecticut Reserve in Ohio was originally set apart for the school fund of Connecticut.
      the Clergy Reserves in Canada are for the support of the clergy.
   3. (Canada) A tract of land set apart for the use of an Aboriginal group; Indian reserve (compare US reservation.)
   4. (military) A body of troops kept in the rear of an army drawn up for battle, reserved to support the other lines as occasion may require; a force or body of troops kept for an exigency.
   5. (finance, insurance) Funds kept on hand to meet planned or unplanned financial requirements.
   6. A reserve price in an auction.
   7. Wine held back and aged before being sold.
   8. (ceramics) Absence of color or decoration; the state of being left plain.
      Each is decorated with a simple disk in reserve and a band in reserve adorned with white dots. 1973, Charles Kyrle Wilkinson, Nishapur: Pottery of the Early Islamic Period, New York, N.Y: Metropolitan Museum of Art, page 161
3. Something initially kept back for later use in recreation.
   1. (sports) A member of a team who does not participate from the start of the game, but can be used to replace tired or injured team-mates.
   2. (card games) A group or pile of cards dealt out at the beginning of a patience or solitaire game to be used during play.
4. In exhibitions, a distinction indicating that the recipient will get a prize in the event of another person being disqualified.
5. (calico printing) A resist.
6. A preparation used on an object being electroplated to fix the limits of the deposit.

verb

1. To keep back; to retain.
   We reserve the right to make modifications.
   I will reserve judgment until I have actually read his book.
2. To keep in store for future or special use.
   This cake is reserved for the guests!
   c. 1703-1720, Jonathan Swift, A Letter to a Very Young Lady on Her Marriage Conceal your esteem and love in your own breast, and reserve your kind looks and language for private hours.
3. To book in advance; to make a reservation.
   I reserved a table for us at the best restaurant in town.
4. (obsolete) To make an exception of; to except.