life preserver

noun

1
: a device (such as a life jacket or life buoy) designed to save a person from drowning by providing buoyancy in water
2
chiefly British : blackjack sense 2

Examples of life preserver in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Bring a canoe, kayak or stand-up paddleboard, along with a life preserver and whistle. Joe Rassel, The Orlando Sentinel, 7 May 2025 It was found with life preservers and shoes inside. Jeanine Santucci, USA Today, 6 May 2025 So, even though swimming pool drownings may have increased in the years that actor Nicholas Cage came out with a new movie doesn’t mean that people should use extra life preservers should Cage appear in a new Ghostrider 3 movie or some other cinematic offering. Bruce Y. Lee, Forbes, 15 Mar. 2025 In a tempest of tragedy, basketball was his life preserver. Ryan Kartje, Los Angeles Times, 27 Jan. 2025 See All Example Sentences for life preserver

Word History

First Known Use

1819, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of life preserver was in 1819

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Life preserver.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/life%20preserver. Accessed 19 May. 2025.

Kids Definition

life preserver

noun
: a device designed to save a person from drowning by holding up the body while in the water

More from Merriam-Webster on life preserver

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