safe space

noun

: a place (as on a college campus) intended to be free of bias, conflict, criticism, or potentially threatening actions, ideas, or conversations

… student volunteers put up posters advertising that a "safe space" would be available for anyone who found the debate too upsetting.

—Judith Shulevitz

Women, sexual assault victims, people of color, transgender students. College campuses have created "safe spaces" for all sorts of marginalized groups.

—Catherine Rampell

Examples of safe space in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

As Dog's Trust outlines, new rescue dogs benefit from having a quiet, safe space to retreat to, a predictable daily routine, and lots of positive reinforcement. —Lydia Patrick, MSNBC Newsweek, 25 June 2025

The point isn’t to fix things immediately, but to create a safe space where both people feel heard. —Mark Travers, Forbes.com, 25 June 2025

The group is creating an inviting, safe space to share the heartfelt experience of diving into a taboo topic which unites everyone. —Ut Community Press, San Diego Union-Tribune, 24 June 2025

Assistant Secretary of Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin said there is no safe space for industries that harbor violent criminals. —Brittney Melton, NPR, 18 June 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1970, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for safe space

• aerospace
• anatase
• anyplace
• commonplace
• cyberspace
• database
• diabase
• diastase
• dnase
• elastase
• fireplace
• hyperspace