safety

1 of 2

noun

safe·​ty ˈsāf-tē How to pronounce safety (audio)
plural safeties
1
: the condition of being safe from undergoing or causing hurt, injury, or loss
2
: a device (as on a weapon or a machine) designed to prevent inadvertent or hazardous operation
3
a(1)
: a situation in football in which a member of the offensive team is tackled behind its own goal line that counts two points for the defensive team compare touchback
(2)
: a member of a defensive backfield in football who occupies the deepest position in order to receive a kick, defend against a forward pass, or stop a ballcarrier
b
: a billiard shot made with no attempt to score or so as to leave the balls in an unfavorable position for the opponent
c

safety

2 of 2

verb

safetied; safetying

transitive verb

: to protect against failure, breakage, or accident
safety a rifle

Examples of safety in a Sentence

Noun The changes were made in the interest of public safety. He made some suggestions about how to improve airline safety. I'm worried about the safety of the people who were left behind. We were reluctant to leave the relative safety of our hotel. She was only a mile from the safety of her home when the accident occurred. The car has been redesigned for improved safety. The toys are inspected for safety. They were led to safety by the rescuers. The injured hiker was finally able to reach safety.
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
The well-being and safety of every Suns employee, player, coach and stakeholder is first and foremost our priority. Katie Wiseman, The Indianapolis Star, 7 Mar. 2024 Moore, who retired at the end of February, said the department’s policy was updated late last year based on analysis of recent court decisions to allow their use against anyone who poses an immediate public safety threat. Libor Jany, Los Angeles Times, 7 Mar. 2024 Meta House's plans meet the special use criteria of protecting public safety and health, and do not raise concerns about nearby property values or traffic impact, according to the department. Tom Daykin, Journal Sentinel, 7 Mar. 2024 The firm gathered input from students, administrators, parents, teachers, staff and community members while conducting its search and found that top concerns included student and staff safety, declining enrollment and staff shortages, according to a report. The Arizona Republic, 7 Mar. 2024 The governor has tried to toughen her public safety platform after Republicans swept in the state’s congressional races in 2022, after campaigning on crime issues. USA TODAY, 7 Mar. 2024 Returning safety Joseph Charleston echoed that Wednesday. Calum McAndrew, Kansas City Star, 7 Mar. 2024 According to the Sun Sentinel, the cause of a crash is not addressed by preliminary safety board reports. Brian Brant, Peoplemag, 6 Mar. 2024 Already with needs to fill at cornerback and safety and with multiple spots open on their offensive and defensive lines, the Dolphins suddenly have another need – starting inside linebacker – amid the release of Jerome Baker. Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 6 Mar. 2024
Verb
Rams safety Jordan Fuller, a team captain, is a pending unrestricted free agent. Gary Klein, Los Angeles Times, 26 Feb. 2024 Such as moving from quarterback to safety deep into his Stanford career, after Walsh showed him film of Ronnie Lott. Tom Krasovic, San Diego Union-Tribune, 17 Feb. 2024 The team found the final two skiers and walked them to safety around 7:30 p.m. Killington Fire/Rescue, Killington Resort Ski Patrol, Rescue Inc. and State PSAP/Dispatch also helped with large rescue mission. Rebecca Cohen, NBC News, 22 Jan. 2024 To bring Shane back to the building is a risk to safety for all. Tyler Kingkade, NBC News, 13 Feb. 2024 The boy can be seen falling to the ground while his desperate mother races to her child’s defense by picking him up and scooping him to safety inside the store. Michael Dorgan, Fox News, 10 Feb. 2024 The heroic man helped get Huber-Lucas to safety by pulling her through the car’s open sunroof moments before the vehicle sank. Abigail Adams, Peoplemag, 25 Jan. 2024 Barry, by the way, is named after a legendary St. Bernard who saved the lives of more than 40 people in the Swiss Alps in the early 1800s, including by carrying them to safety on his back. IEEE Spectrum, 15 Dec. 2023 That claim and her announcement that after 14 months of Musk’s ownership and deep cuts to trust and safety the company was now hiring new moderators raised the eyebrows of social platform experts and former Twitter employees. Vittoria Elliott, WIRED, 1 Feb. 2024

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

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English saufte, from Anglo-French salveté, saufté, from salf safe

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1916, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of safety was in the 14th century

Cite this Entry

“Safety.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/safety. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

safety

noun
safe·​ty
ˈsāf-tē
plural safeties
1
: the state or condition of being safe : freedom from hurt, injury, or loss
2
: a protective device (as on a pistol) to prevent accidental operation
3
a
: a score of two points for the defensive team in football when an offensive ballcarrier is tackled behind the offensive team's goal line
b
: a defensive football player whose position is far back from the line of scrimmage

More from Merriam-Webster on safety

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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