Safety Meaning
/ˈseɪfti/Definition, CEFR level A2, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounThe condition or feeling of being safe; security; certainty.
nounA safety lock or safety catch: a mechanism on a weapon or dangerous equipment designed to prevent accidental firing or operation.
Sentence Examples
You should be more thoughtful of your safety.
She kept her valuables in the bank for safety.
A place where children can play in safety
CEFR Practice Quiz
The company's main priority is the ____ of its employees working in the factory.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The construction site manager enforced strict ____ protocols to prevent accidents.
Word Origin & History
Inherited from Middle English savete, from Old French sauveté, from earlier salvetet, from Medieval Latin salvitās, salvitātem, from Latin salvus.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"Oh, oh! “Go to safety”! Why didn’t I think of that⁉ Here I am in danger when, really, I could simply be going to safety! I shouldn’t have wasted your time by calling in the first place!"
— 2016 May 15, chapter 911, in Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, season 3, episode 12, John Oliver (actor), via HBO:
"[…] imprison him, […] / Deliver him to safety; and return,"
— c. 1596 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Life and Death of King Iohn”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act IV, scene ii]:
"Boy wondered about that bunt. He had a notion Fowler would commit himself soon because time was on the go. But Fowler didn’t, making it another sweep of three Pirates. He had thus far given up only two safeties."
— 1952, Bernard Malamud, The Natural, Time Life Books, published 1966, page 225:
"Many wheelmen and wheelwomen, riding safeties, tandems and tricycles, stopped there during the evening and we had good opportunity for comparing American and English bicycles […]"
— 1897, American Architect and Architecture, volumes 57-58, page 51:
"There are cyclists, like Mr. F. T. Bidlake, who prefer a tricycle to a safety, and to such men a long ride on a tricycle is no more fatiguing than a safety bicycle ride of the same distance."
— 1921, W. F. Grew, The Cycle Industry, London, page 22:
Explore More A2 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The company's main priority is the ____ of its employees working in the factory.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The construction site manager enforced strict ____ protocols to prevent accidents.