Meaning of safety in English

safety

noun

/ˈseɪf.ti/ us

/ˈseɪf.ti/

safety noun (NOT BEING IN DANGER)

a state in which or a place where you are safe and not in danger or at risk:

for someone's safety For your (comfort and) safety, we recommend you keep your seat belt loosely fastened during the flight.

guarantee/assure someone’s safety Reporters may enter the danger zone but unfortunately we cannot guarantee/assure their safety.

The crew of the ship were winched to safety by a rescue helicopter.

run/dive for safety As the gunman opened fire, they all ran/dived for safety behind the trees.

concerned for the safety of Police are concerned for the safety of (= think that something bad might have happened to) the five-year-old.

a place of safety He was led to a place of safety (= somewhere he would not be in danger, especially of being found and harmed).

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Concern for the safety of the two missing teenagers is growing.
The report is highly critical of safety standards at the factory.
The airline is taking steps to ensure safety on its aircraft.
Her parents fear for her safety.
These measures were designed to improve car safety.

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Safe and secure

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safety noun (IN AMERICAN FOOTBALL)

[ C ]

in American football, an occasion when a player carrying the ball is tackled behind the team's goal line, which scores two points for the defence:

The quarterback was sacked in the end zone for a safety.

[ C ]

in American football, a player on the defence who stands away from the line of scrimmage (= the line on which the ball is positioned at the beginning of a period of action) and defends against passes and runs that get past the defensive line:

The runner was tackled by the safety in the backfield.

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

American football

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Idioms

safety first

there's safety in numbers

(Definition of safety from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

safety | American Dictionary

safety

noun [ U ]

/ˈseɪf·ti/

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the condition of not being in danger or of not being dangerous:

For your safety, keep your seat belt securely fastened.

Fire officials worry about the safety of those heaters.

(Definition of safety from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

safety | Business English

safety

noun [ U ]

/ˈseɪfti/ us

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the state of being protected from danger or harm:

You have a right to be protected against anything that can affect your safety.

public/passenger/consumer safety

the condition of not being likely to cause damage or harm:

the safety of sth Many people are wondering about the safety of some food imports.

food/drug/product safety

fire safety

Apart from this one incident, the company has an excellent safety record.

used before a noun to describe equipment, rules, etc. that are designed to keep people from being harmed:

safety glasses

The company is now a world leader in car safety seats.

The iron's best safety feature is that it shuts off automatically.

The building is not compliant with the new safety standards.

The law requires a certificate showing that the latest safety tests have been carried out.

safety procedures.

air/workplace/mine, etc. safety

the fact of keeping people safe in a particular place:

Fletcher is an independent mine safety consultant in New Zealand.

We always make air safety our first priority.

Examples of safety

safety

Would it not be better for safety's sake to accept the amendment?

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