spare somebody.

[Tae-Bbong-E]

Hi,
Do you usually use this pattern "spare somebody" in the red box?


For such a long time, I have fallen over myself to find any example sentence using this pattern "spare somebody", but there has been no luck so far.
If you didn't mind, would you show me any of the examples?

 

[Rover_KE]

Where did you find the quoted text?

 

[Tae-Bbong-E]

Where did you find the quoted text?

Here is where I found it.
https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/us/definition/english/spare_2

The first definition.

 

[Rover_KE]

https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/us/definition/english/spare_2

Thank you.

In future threads, please give this information in post #1 so we don't have to ask you for it.

 

[jutfrank]

Yes, it's a very common pattern. The examples in the dictionary are good ones.

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

. . . For [STRIKE]such[/STRIKE] a long time, I have fallen over myself trying to find any example sentences using the pattern "spare somebody", but I've had no luck so far.
If you didn't mind, would you show me some examples?

- Spare me the hearts and flowers! (It means: Don't get sentimental.)

- I spared him the gory details. (It means: I got to the point right away.)

- "Brother, can you spare a dime?" (It's from the song "Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?")

- "Could you spare a dime for a fellow American who's down on his luck?" (It's from B. Traven's The Treasure of the Sierra Madre.)

- We haven't a moment to spare! (It means: Hurry!)

- Don't spare the horses! (It also means: Hurry! As in: Make the horses run until they drop dead.)

- We all fit in the limosine, with room to spare. (That is, there was extra room. See: room to spare.)

 

[tzfujimino]

Is this what you've been looking for, Tae-Bbong-E?

We can't spare the staff for training sessions.

https://www.macmillandictionary.com/dictionary/american/spare_2#spare_18

Edit:
Your question might be whether it's OK to say something like this:

We can't spare the staff.

 

[Tae-Bbong-E]

Is this what you've been looking for, Tae-Bbong-E?

We can't spare the staff for training sessions.

https://www.macmillandictionary.com/dictionary/american/spare_2#spare_18

Edit:
Your question might be whether it's OK to say something like this:

We can't spare the staff.

Hello!
Yes~! That is what I have been curious about so far.
Oh~ I see. So the pattern of "spare somebody as in Oxford dictionary. (Actually other patterns in the dictionary were studied already reviewed by me.)

Indeed, the dictionary only shows an example sentence when an object is something, although it says <spare something or somebody> is possible.
<spare something>
• I'd love to have a break, but I can't spare the time just now.

Just before reading your reply, I haven't been able to see any sentence with the pattern <spare somebody>.
Anyway as you showed me, that pattern is also okay.
• we can't spare the staff.



P.S.
I have fallen over myself to find any example sentences
→ I have fallen over myself trying to find any example sentences (corrected by Charlie Bernstein)

But I meant to use this idiom.
https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionar...fall-over-yourself-to-do?q=fall+over+yourself
"fall over yourself to do something".

That's why I wrote like this: I have fallen over myself to find any example sentences

 

[Tdol]

Hi,
Do you usually use this pattern "spare somebody" in the red box?

I do, but it requires the whole sentence as I would only spare somebody if pointing a gun at them.

 

[probus]

But the gun can be metaphorical, can't it?

 

[Tdol]

Yes