safety

noun safe·ty \ ˈsāf-tē \

|Updated on: 5 Jul 2018

Definition of safety

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 : base hit

See safety defined for English-language learners

See safety defined for kids

Examples of safety in a Sentence

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 of safety from the Web

Manager Liam Norris said safety is stressed and all players must wear goggles to protect their eyes.

— frank vaisvilas, Daily Southtown, "Like 'Call of Duty' but a lot more fun: Weekend warriors play paintball scenarios in Crete," 2 July 2018
If safety were an absolute value in transportation policy, the national highway speed limit would be fifteen miles an hour.

— william finnegan, The New Yorker, "Can Andy Byford Save the Subways?," 2 July 2018
Offerings include a summer playgroup, martial arts clinic, youth basketball camp, babysitter safety courses, open swim, swim lessons, super Sundays at the pool and a children's entertainment series.

— Courant Community, "Community News For The Enfield Edition," 2 July 2018
But close on the hierarchy were the public safety officers, the janitorial workers, the cooks in the dining hall.

— alison kuznitz, courant.com, "A Visionary Leader, President John Lahey Casts His Final Shadow On Quinnipiac University," 2 July 2018
The ruling followed a legal challenge on behalf of Kentucky Medicaid beneficiaries who argued the changes are outside the scope of federal Medicaid law, designed as a safety-net program to provide health coverage to low income, vulnerable citizens.

— deborah yetter, The Courier-Journal, "Dems decry Bevin cuts to Medicaid after judge strikes down his plan," 2 July 2018
In surgery, a high-stakes field that requires both technical and interpersonal skills, conflicts can be problematic for teamwork and can even threaten patient safety.

— orly nadell farber, STAT, "‘You, me, parking lot!’: Behind surgical curtain, researchers find hierarchies and gender dynamics driving conflict," 2 July 2018
The Coolidges had received a series of threatening letters, so the president was likely concerned for his son’s safety—but perhaps cloaked beneath the veneer of security was Coolidge’s underlying exasperation with his son’s continued shenanigans.

— katherine j. wu, Smithsonian, "For His Patriotic Birthday, Five Facts About Calvin Coolidge," 2 July 2018
The administration of Mayor Ethan Berkowitz said Thursday the tax money would have offset property taxes and offset the cost of public safety and drug and alcohol abuse.

— laurel andrews, Anchorage Daily News, "Marijuana tax increase fails at Anchorage assembly," 29 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'safety.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.