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lifeboat

lifeboat

72 1.5
A strong boat kept on a ship or on the shore to save people in danger at sea
  • noun
  • /ˈlaɪfˌboʊt/
translation icon : bote salvavidas
  • The crew quickly loaded the passengers into the lifeboat as the ship began to sink.
  • lifeboats on ships

And you're like, well, I think I better start swimming, right, rather than just simply cling to the lifeboat.

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Examples

  • Corrie bought supplies for the voyage, and the crew used the lifeboat to ferry back and forth from the ship.

    Academic text (2009)
  • Man the lifeboats, women and children first!

  • Why on earth would she get into the lifeboat without us?

    Fiction book (1991)
  • Contact me from the bridge when the last lifeboat is loaded.

  • I was alone in a lifeboat... drifting across the Pacific Ocean.

  • There had been no lifeboat drill until then, no practice, no warnings, no preparation.

    Fiction book (1991)
  • He's headed for the lifeboat.

  • First order of business, as with all cruises, was the lifeboat drill.

    Academic text (2005)
  • At 1:55 A.M., they were the last real lifeboat to leave the Titanic.

    Fiction book (1991)
  • Man the lifeboats!

Synonyms

life raft
vslifeboat
7 2.9

A small inflatable boat used to escape from a sinking ship

is a strong craft kept to rescue people rather than an evacuation platform
surfboat
vslifeboat
  • Specialized
6.7

A strong boat made to go through heavy waves to save people

is a strong craft kept to rescue people from sinking ships
Carling float
vslifeboat
  • Specialized
9.9

An emergency raft on a ship for people to use if they must leave at sea

is a strong craft kept for rescuing from sinking ships rather than an evacuation platform

How Big

lifeboat
72 1.5
rowboat
21 1.0
dinghy
18 4.8

Surface Forms

lifeboat singular
lifeboats plural

Morphology

lifeboat = life + boat (transparent) = life + boat

A literal, directly interpretable compound: a boat intended for saving lives; meaning is predictable from 'life' + 'boat'.

Etymology

Lifeboat joins the words life ('living') and boat ('small ship'), so it is a boat meant to save people's lives. That's why a lifeboat is kept on ships or at the shore to rescue people in danger at sea.