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Glite Dictionary
🚪 A safety exit 📝 A way out
escape hatch

escape hatch

1 5.0
A clause or simple rule that lets someone leave an agreement without a big loss
  • noun
  • /ɪˈskeɪp hætʃ/
translation icon : cláusula de escape
  • The agreement featured an escape hatch, enabling either party to leave the contract without penalty under specific circumstances.

Examples

  • It was an escape hatch built by Keynesians that no longer allows them an escape.

    Blog text (10)

  • I'll ask you if you perceive this as a good thing because sometimes it might feel a little bit like a an escape hatch from a difficult situation.

  • The contract included an escape hatch that allowed the company to withdraw from the agreement if certain conditions were not met.

  • The new policy has an escape hatch, permitting employees to opt out if they feel uncomfortable with the requirements.

Synonyms

way out
vsescape hatch
∞ 2.0

An exit like a door that you use to leave a place

is a contractual or informal mechanism that lets parties avoid obligations or consequences
exit
vsescape hatch
363 1.0

An opening or way that lets people leave a place

focuses on allowing a party to stop obligations within policies or contracts
escape clause
vsescape hatch
  • Formal
1 5.5

A part of a contract that lets one or both people cancel it in certain situations

is broader, including informal mechanisms beyond formal contract provisions

Antonyms

binding
  • Formal
4.6

Required by law and able to be enforced

How Easy

loophole
115 5.8
escape hatch
1 5.0
to opt out
50 3.5
provision
  • Formal
313 5.6

Surface Forms

escape hatch singular
escape hatches plural

Morphology

escape + hatch

The sense 'a provision or mechanism that lets someone get out or avoid obligations' is directly derivable from combining 'escape' (to get away/avoid) with 'hatch' (an opening or exit): it evokes a literal opening used to escape and thus functions as a straightforward metaphor meaning 'a way out'. This compounding/metaphor is common cross-linguistically, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents should be able to infer the MWE's meaning.

Etymology

Escape hatch in a contract or plan is a small rule or option that works like a real hatch, a tiny door you use to 'escape' when things go wrong. Because of that image, people call any clause or way to avoid or leave a commitment an 'escape hatch'.