safety

noun

The condition or feeling of being safe; security; certainty.

(mechanics) A safety lock or safety catch: a mechanism on a weapon or dangerous equipment designed to prevent accidental firing or operation.

Preservation from escape; close custody.

(sports) (American football) Any of the defensive players who are in position furthest from the line of scrimmage and whose responsibility is to defend against passes as well as to be the tacklers of last resort.

(sports) (American football) An instance of a player being sacked or tackled in the end zone, or stepping out of the end zone and off the field, resulting in two points to the opposite team.

(sports) (baseball) A safety squeeze.

(sports) (snooker) A safety shot or sequence of such shots.

(dated) A safety bicycle.

verb

(transitive) To secure (a mechanical component, as in aviation) to keep it from becoming detached even under vibration.

to secure a firing pin, as in guns, to keep the gun from firing

Roots

salvussafe- · Latin · safe, unharmed

Synonyms for safety

safenessn securityn guardn protectionn refugen assurancen prophylacticn safekeepingn

Synonyms & related words for safety

Find synonyms, related words, and the definition of safety — including safeness, security, guard, protection, refuge, assurance. Dendril is a free visual thesaurus that shows them on an interactive map where stronger matches sit closer to the center — no signup, no ads.

Words related to safety

Explore words related to safety — words associated with it, words that go with it, and its nearest matches in meaning. Related words include safe, safeguarding, safeguards, ensuring, securement, safeguarded, secure, sureness. Click any word to make it the center of the map and keep exploring the web of connections.

Synonyms for safety

Common synonyms for safety include safeness, security, guard, protection, refuge, assurance, prophylactic, safekeeping — words that share a close meaning. Hover or tap any word on the map for its definition and part of speech.

Where does safety come from?

The word safety breaks down into one root of Latin origin: the root safe-, from Latin salvus (“safe, unharmed”). Explore each root to see other English words built from the same source.