How to Use preservative in a Sentence

preservative

1 of 2 adjective
  • Others said variety was the spice, or at least, preservative of life.
    — New York Times, 13 July 2022
  • Others said variety was the spice — or, at least, preservative — of life.
    — Jason Horowitz, BostonGlobe.com, 16 July 2022
  • Till’s murder made somehow more lurid through the preservative lacquer of folk heroism.
    — Washington Post, 22 Mar. 2022
  • What’s not in it is the alphabet soup of preservative enhancements that the health-minded crowd tries to avoid.
    — Donna Vickroy, Chicago Tribune, 30 Jan. 2026
  • What’s more, this cologne is preservative-free, phthalate-free and made with clean ingredients.
    — Grooming Playbook, The Salt Lake Tribune, 4 Nov. 2022
  • This unique capsule is soy-free, gluten-free, dairy-free, preservative-free, and filled with potent ingredients.
    — Alyssa Edwards, Discover Magazine, 15 Dec. 2022
  • Beginning this month, all Swamp Pops are also preservative-free.
    — Michael Alberty | For The Oregonian/oregonlive, oregonlive, 15 Aug. 2020
  • LyondellBasell produces a form of the acid that is used as a food preservative and flavor additive.
    — Tom Steele, Dallas News, 28 July 2021
  • The document allegedly found there was no link between the preservative thimerosal in flu vaccines and autism.
    — Bymary Kekatos, ABC News, 10 July 2025
  • Self-preservative, and selfless, and hurtful, and thoughtful, and disloyal/rash/long overdue ones.
    — Carolyn Hax, Washington Post, 25 May 2022
  • This preservative system is designed to prevent microbial growth.
    — Lydia T. Blanco, Forbes, 3 Oct. 2022
  • And rosemary rounds out the ingredients by adding its natural preservative elements to the pack.
    — Dallas News, 18 Jan. 2023
  • Moonbowls also serves preservative-free and plant-based alternatives.
    — Emma Hall, Sacbee.com, 21 Apr. 2026
  • In addition, many hospitals now offer preservative-free options.
    — Duaa Eldeib, ProPublica, 12 June 2026
  • This coastal fishing culture came to mummification through the natural preservative properties of the earth and desert in their region.
    — Literary Hub, 31 Oct. 2025
  • All were in fine to near-mint condition thanks to the preservative climate in the Northern California attic.
    — Don Sweeney, Sacbee.com, 23 Nov. 2025
  • According to the paper, the fluid consists of a mixture of red blood cells, electrolytes, vitamins, and a cold preservative solution.
    — Mack Degeurin, Popular Science, 17 July 2025
  • Vinegar has a plethora of culinary applications and serves as an effective food preservative and delicious sour condiment.
    — Anthony Martin, Discover Magazine, 5 Aug. 2014
  • Over half were additives typically added to ultraprocessed foods; the rest were more natural options, such as the use of lemon juice as a preservative or beet juice for color.
    — Sandee Lamotte, CNN Money, 11 Feb. 2026
  • On top of what a wine already contains, a winemaker can add more sulfur as a preservative and antioxidant, to protect against a wide range of ills, including bacteria.
    — Senior Wine Critic, San Francisco Chronicle, 24 Aug. 2021
  • Besides the preservative-free foods, which are cooked only in pure avocado oil, all the Fresh N Go sauces are vegan, dairy-free and gluten-free.
    — San Diego Union-Tribune, 24 Feb. 2023
  • Some bills seek to regulate other chemicals, such as the preservative propylparaben, or potassium bromate, a chemical added to flour to strengthen dough.
    — Yuki Noguchi, NPR, 30 July 2025
  • Fragrance and preservative ingredients are common triggers in beauty and personal-care products.
    — Parizaad Khan Sethi, Allure, 24 Aug. 2022
  • The batter, mixed with a hand mixer, includes almond paste (a nod to the usual marzipan covering), which helps increase the cake’s preservative qualities with its high sugar and fat content.
    — Claire Saffitz, New York Times, 28 Nov. 2022
  • Sodium azide, a colorless, tasteless and odorless powder, is used as a propellant in airbags, as a herbicide and a pest control agent as well as a laboratory preservative agent.
    — Leada Gore | [email protected], al, 23 Feb. 2022
  • In one of its first actions, the new advisory committee called for the removal of the preservative thimerosal used in a small fraction of flu vaccines, even though safety concerns about it have also been debunked.
    — NPR, 20 Nov. 2025
  • The arms and heads of young children and stillborn babies floated in crystal-clear preservative liquid; some of the body parts were dressed with fringes of lace, tassels, or bonnets with exotic feathers held perfectly in place.
    — Mike Jay, The New York Review of Books, 17 Nov. 2022
  • Lumberyards catering to contractors carry the other kinds, which have significantly more preservative infused into the wood.
    — Jeanne Huber, Washington Post, 17 Aug. 2020
  • The transporter utilizes a technique called hypothermic machine perfusion, which pumps a preservative solution through a kidney at near-freezing temperatures.
    — Allison Futterman, Discover Magazine, 6 Apr. 2022
  • Thanks to widespread manufacturing, Irish moss found a whole slew of new applications, such as stabilizing chocolate milk and being combined with ascorbic acid to form a preservative film over frozen foods.
    — Emily Toomey, Smithsonian, 23 July 2019

preservative

2 of 2 noun
  • The wood was treated with preservative.
  • This food does not contain any artificial preservatives.
  • There are no fillers, no preservatives, no frozen dough.
    — Kansas City Star, 13 May 2026
  • Country ham is pork that’s been dry-cured with salt and preservatives.
    — Sheri Castle, Southern Living, 9 Nov. 2023
  • Over time, preservatives break down and allow the shampoo to go bad.
    — Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 11 Aug. 2025
  • Or could something else, like preservatives or fungus, be to blame?
    — Cara Giaimo, New York Times, 20 Oct. 2023
  • Its foods are gluten-free, with no refined sugar or preservatives.
    — Noah Lyons, San Diego Union-Tribune, 28 June 2026
  • The easiest and cheapest way to deal with this is to use a preservative.
    — Liz Leavitt, refinery29.com, 1 Mar. 2023
  • Use a clean brush to remove sanding dust, and apply a clear wood preservative.
    — Neal Barrett, Popular Mechanics, 31 July 2021
  • Homemade breads without preservatives in the mix are much more prone to this issue.
    — Katie Rosenhouse, Southern Living, 3 Jan. 2026
  • Homemade breads without preservatives in the mix are much more prone to this issue.
    — Katie Rosenhouse, Southern Living, 24 May 2026
  • Natural hair products that lack preservatives could last six months or a year.
    — Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 11 Aug. 2025
  • Thanks to lead’s sweet taste, it was even sprinkled on food or wine as a preservative and a deadly condiment.
    — Michael J. Coren, Quartz, 16 June 2022
  • No crappy oils or preservatives.
    — Michael Deeds, Idaho Statesman, 2 June 2026
  • Their sugar content acts as a preservative.
    — Kait Hanson, Southern Living, 29 May 2026
  • It is used as a preservative for food, to enhance flavor and to melt ice to assist our winter drives.
    — Brenda Yenke, cleveland, 16 Sep. 2021
  • The bottom line is, more research is needed to say for sure if or how preservatives cause cancer.
    — Jamie Ducharme, Health, 9 Jan. 2026
  • Real sourdough bread has a short shelf life without preservatives.
    — Maggie O'Neill, Verywell Health, 26 Dec. 2025
  • The standard way to preserve organs is to cool them rapidly and then store them in an ice-cold preservative.
    — Amy Dockser Marcus, WSJ, 3 Aug. 2022
  • The cabbage or daikon is sliced into small uniform pieces, which are coated with salt as a preservative.
    — Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 17 Apr. 2023
  • Decades of research has found no link between autism and vaccines or any vaccine preservative.
    — Sasha Pezenik, ABC News, 8 May 2026
  • Among them, a dead shark floating in a jar of liquid chemical preservative.
    — Meena Thiruvengadam, Travel + Leisure, 25 Feb. 2021
  • Half was the highest grade and the other was unprocessed, with no preservatives.
    — Cesar Hernandez, San Francisco Chronicle, 12 Apr. 2023
  • Costco has removed the ‘no preservative’ claims from its labels in store and online.
    — Clara Harter, Los Angeles Times, 29 Jan. 2026
  • Their white bean chips are sourced from American farms and made without preservatives.
    — Good Housekeeping, 28 June 2023
  • The brisket is cured for hours in a brine of water, salt, spices and preservatives and can also be injected with the brine.
    — Susan Selasky, Detroit Free Press, 15 Mar. 2024
  • Even with preservatives and dough conditioners, breads are hard to keep stable and tend to go stale and/or grow mold.
    — Bridget Shirvell, Martha Stewart, 8 Jan. 2026
  • Quickly absorbed by the body, there are no extra sugars, gluten, or preservatives.
    — Bestreviews, Chicago Tribune, 7 Jan. 2026
  • The yolk contains none of these natural preservatives, and so the bacteria are able to grow in the yolk.
    — Teresa Mull, FOXNews.com, 2 June 2026
  • This is because the alcohol acts as a preservative, keeping the cream from going bad!
    — Christopher Michel, Country Living, 26 Jan. 2023

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'preservative.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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