v. t. | 1. | To keep back; to retain; not to deliver, make over, or disclose. |
| 2. | Hence, to keep in store for future or special use; to withhold from present use for another purpose or time; to keep; to retain; to make a reservation{7}. |
| 3. | To make an exception of; to except. |
n. | 1. | The act of reserving, or keeping back; reservation. |
| 2. | That which is reserved, or kept back, as for future use. |
| 3. | That which is excepted; exception. |
| 4. | Restraint of freedom in words or actions; backwardness; caution in personal behavior. |
| 5. | A tract of land reserved, or set apart, for a particular purpose; as, the Connecticut Reserve in Ohio, originally set apart for the school fund of Connecticut; the Clergy Reserves in Canada, for the support of the clergy. |
| 6. | (Mil.) A body of troops 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. |
| 7. | (Banking) Funds kept on hand to meet liabilities. |
| 8. | (Finance) That part of the assets of a bank or other financial institution specially kept in cash in a more or less liquid form as a reasonable provision for meeting all demands which may be made upon it; |
| 9. | In exhibitions, a distinction which indicates that the recipient will get a prize if another should be disqualified. |
| 10. | (Calico Printing) A resist. |
| 11. | A preparation used on an object being electroplated to fix the limits of the deposit. |