energy to spare
1
3.5
- idiom
:
energía de sobra
- Even after completing her homework, Maria had energy to spare for a bike ride.
- time and energy to spare
Examples
-
Really, did you have 20 minutes of time and energy to spare?
Blog text (34) -
One can understand why these prime ministers had little time and energy to spare on domestic issues.
Academic text (2011) -
And on days that passed more quietly than others, it seemed as though she should have had some energy to spare; she had none.
Fiction book (1995) -
She always had energy to spare.
Fiction book (1990) -
If I'm feeling ahead of schedule and have energy to spare, I complete some long-term tasks.
Academic text (2004) -
She had wit, smarts, charm, and energy to spare.
Academic text (2010) -
After a long day at work, I still have energy to spare for a evening jog.
-
He finished the project ahead of time and felt he had energy to spare for some extra studying.
How Energetic
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase is composed transparently from 'energy' (stamina) and 'spare' (extra/available), with the function word 'to' linking them; a learner who knows these words will readily infer 'extra energy'. The pattern 'X to spare' (e.g. 'time to spare', 'money to spare') is productive in English and has close parallels in many languages, so the meaning is predictable for a B1 learner.
Etymology
Energy to spare comes from the image of energy and spare, where spare means 'extra' or 'left over', like spare money in your pocket. So it means having more energy than you need for an activity.