Jaws of Life
3
6.5
- noun
- /dʒɔz əv laɪf/
- Specialized
:
mordazas de la vida
- When the car flipped over, the firefighters realized they needed the jaws of life to get the passengers out safely.
- use the Jaws of Life
- work with the Jaws of Life
- need the Jaws of Life
And then we cut to the jaws of life, getting them out.
- And then we cut to the jaws of life, getting them out.
- We, we call it the Jaws of Life that you use in a car crash.
Examples
-
The rescue team used the jaws of life to free the trapped driver from the wrecked car.
-
We'll need the jaws of life.
-
We need to get the jaws of life ready for when the coroner gets here.
-
Rescue personnel used the Jaws of Life to extract Tammy and Lacey from their car.
Blog text (19) -
Rescue workers work feverishly with jaws of life to get into the mangled wreckage.
Fiction book (1993) -
Firefighters had to use the 'jaws of life' to cut people out of a car and pickup truck, Chief Charles Sonnier of the Labelle-Fannett Volunteer Fire Department was quoted as saying by KFDM News.
Blog text (8) -
In an emergency, the jaws of life are essential for cutting through metal to reach injured people.
Synonyms
10
8.0
A small metal bar used to force open doors or windows
4
8.4
A long metal bar with a flat end used to lift or move heavy things
1
2.8
Tools and devices used to save people in emergencies like stretchers and first aid kits
1
6.5
A long strong iron bar with a flat or forked end that you use to force things apart
How Powerful
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase combines 'jaws' (gripping parts) and 'life' in a metaphorical way that gives a clue that the thing is used to save or protect life, so a B1 learner who knows the words might infer a rescue-related function. However, the exact referent—a specific hydraulic tool used to pry open vehicles—is technical and not directly predictable from the constituents, so the expression is only partially transparent and would likely require exposure to learn precisely.
Etymology
Jaws of Life comes from the tool's metal jaws that open a crashed car like an animal's mouth to free someone who is trapped. Rescue workers saw those strong jaws as giving 'life' by saving people, so the name now means the tool used to open cars and free trapped people.