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safe Definition

safe (sāf)

adjective safer, saf·est

    1. free from damage, danger, or injury; secure
    2. having escaped danger or injury; unharmed
    1. giving protection
    2. involving no risk
    3. trustworthy
  1. no longer dangerous; unable to cause trouble or damage safe in jail
  2. taking no risks; prudent; cautious: said of persons
  3. Baseball having reached a base without being put out

Etymology: ME sauf < OFr < L salvus, akin to salus, health, sound condition < IE base *solo-, whole, well-preserved > Gr holos, whole, Sans sarva, unharmed, whole

noun

  1. a container or box, capable of being locked and usually of metal, in which to store valuables
  2. any compartment, box, etc. for storing food, etc. a meat safe
  3. Slang a condom

Etymology: altered (after the adj.) < earlier save < save

safe Related Forms
safely adverb safe·ness noun
safe Synonyms

safe

modif.

  1. Not in danger

    out of danger, secure, in safety, in security, free from harm, free from danger, unharmed, unscathed, safe and sound, protected, guarded, housed, screened from danger, unmolested, unthreatened, entrenched, impregnable, invulnerable, under the protection of, saved, safeguarded, secured, defended, supported, sustained, maintained, upheld, preserved, vindicated, shielded, nourished, sheltered, fostered, cared for, cherished, watched, impervious to, patrolled, looked after, ministered to, supervised, tended, attended, kept in view, kept in order, surveyed, regulated, with one's head above water*, undercover*, out of harm's way*, on the safe side*, on ice*, in free*, at anchor*, in harbor*, snug*, snug as a bug in a rug*, out of the meshes*, under one's wing*, bearing a charmed life*, under lock and key*.

    Antonyms dangerous*, unsafe*, risky. *

  2. Not dangerous

    innocent, innocuous, innoxious; see harmless 2.

  3. Reliable

    trustworthy, dependable, competent; see reliable 1, 2.

safe implies freedom from or escape from damage, danger, or injury or from the risk of damage, etc. reached the fort safe and sound; secure, often interchangeable with safe, is now usually applied to something about which there is no need to feel apprehension he feels secure in his job

safe Synonyms

safe

n.

strongbox, coffer, chest, repository, vault, case, reliquary, safe-deposit box, safety-deposit box.

safe Usage Examples

Adjective complement with noun phrase

  • keep: Over here, security is about keeping the students safe from outside influences, not about keeping the staff save from their wards.

Modifies a noun

  • haven: Would that he could return to this, such a safe haven!
  • environment: Given the nature of the products carried, a safe working environment is paramount.
  • bet: For one night's rest this is usually a safe bet.
  • sex: He said: " Well, apart from having safe sex we haven't really got a problem then.
  • place: Now, several years later, the park is no longer a safe place to take yourself, let alone a small child.
  • route: Details of schemes around the country can be found on the safer routes to school website.

Used with adjective complement

  • feel: People should feel safe from attack, in their own homes, at school, on the street, or at their workplace.
  • stay: How will you make sure my child stays safe?
  • keep: We need to be checking rigorously the importation of meat and meat products to ensure that Britain is kept safe.
  • remain: However there are also steps that you can take to make sure your personal information remains safe.

Infinitive complement

  • assume: They are a reminder that it is not safe to assume these boards were always moved by the Victorians from beside the altar.
  • eat: Food safety is another, " is it safe to eat?
  • drink: Other Health Risks: Bilharzia Food & Drink Water is untreated and not safe to drink.
  • say: Safe to say, it was the best shows the band has ever done.
  • swim: The ocean is safe to swim in and tap water is potable.

Preposition: in

  • knowledge: Lugosi and Luna go back to the theater and everyone lives happily ever after, safe in the knowledge that vampires are nonsence.

Preposition: from

  • harm: Very often children and babies are carried around the bonfires, because Hindus believe this will keep them safe from harm.

Preposition: for

  • Everyone: Tomorrow's roads: Safer for Everyone The Government's road safety strategy and casualty reduction targets for 2010.
  • everyone: Our purpose is to make Down District safer for everyone through professional progressive policing.
safe Quotes

Who is there in that lot one would want as a father, except perhaps MrsThatcher? That choice would be irregular but safe.

—West, Dame Rebecca formerly  Cecily Isabel Fairfield

And he, who servilely creeps after sense, Is safe, but ne'er will reach an excellence.

—Dryden,John

You are suspended in me beautiful and frozen, I preserve you, in me you are safe.

—Atwood, Margaret Eleanor

Motor racing is dangerous; but what is danger? It is dangerous to climb a mountain. It is dangerous to cross main roads. It is dangerous to explore a jungle.One cannot frame regulations to make everything safe.

—Hawthorn, Mike

I cannot and will not recant anything, for to go against conscience is neither right nor safe.

—Luther, Martin

How right it seemed that he should reach the span Of comfortable years allowed to man! Splendid to eat and sleep and choose a wife, Safe with his wound, a citizen of life. He hobbled blithely through the garden gate, And thought: 'Thank God they had to amputate!'

—Sassoon, Siegfried Louvain

A ship inport issafe butthat'snot what ships are builtfor.

—Hopper, Grace Murray

Just when you thought it was safe to get back into the water.

—Anonymous

In this war, we demand nothing that is peculiar to ourselves; only thatthe world be made fit and safeto live in.The programme oftheworld'speace, therefore, is our programme.

—Wilson, (Thomas) Woodrow

History teaches us that enmities between nations†do not last forever.Wemustconduct ouraffairsinsuchaway that it becomes in the communists' interests to agree on a genuine peace†to let each nation choose its own future, so long as that choice does not interfere with the choices of others. If we cannot now end our differences, at least we can help make the world safe for diversity.

—Kennedy,John F(itzgerald)