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Synonyms

lifeboat

American  
[lahyf-boht] / ˈlaɪfˌboʊt /

noun

  1. a double-ended ship's boat, constructed, mounted, and provisioned so as to be readily able to rescue and maintain persons from a sinking vessel.

  2. a similarly constructed boat used by shore-based rescue services.

lifeboat British  
/ ˈlaɪfˌbəʊt /

noun

  1. a boat, propelled by oars or a motor, used for rescuing people at sea, escaping from a sinking ship, etc

  2. informal a fund set up by the dealers in a market to rescue any member who may become insolvent as a result of a collapse in market prices

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of lifeboat

First recorded in 1795–1805; life + boat

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

While the ship had enough lifeboats on board to meet maritime regulations of the time they only had the capacity for half of the passengers on board the night she sank.

From BBC

It currently operates 238 lifeboat services in the UK and Ireland.

From BBC

But, for some, the end will be deferred after a compromise deal was struck that gives a select few a chance to board what one outgoing peer called the "hereditary lifeboat".

From BBC

In February, The Australian reported on the discovery of oceangoing lifeboats on an Indonesian beach, lifeboats purchased by the Australian government just a month earlier.

From Salon

Four crew members were rescued by lifeboat and HM Coastguard said the vessel remained aground and the responsibility of its owner.

From BBC

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.