air bag
5
2.8
- noun
- /ˈɛr bæɡ/
- Specialized
:
airbag
- Before driving, ensure that the air bag system in your car is functioning properly for maximum protection.
- side air bags
- driver-side air bag
- passenger air bags
Examples
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That way the air bags deploy.
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Modern vehicles are equipped with multiple air bags to enhance passenger safety in case of an accident.
-
Looks like your air bag saved you.
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Hope you got an air bag.
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I hope this thing has air bags!
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It has dual side air bags and a spacious back seat.
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Standard driver-side air bag.
Fiction book (1993) -
Hey, '89 Mercury Sable, standard driver's-side air bag.
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The air bag deployed quickly during the crash, cushioning the impact for the passengers.
Synonyms
1
3.7
A bag along a car roof that inflates to protect people's heads in side crashes and rollovers
1
3.3
A large bag that inflates above side windows to protect heads in a side crash
Antonyms
How Protective
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly built from 'air' (the gas) + 'bag' (a flexible container): a bag filled with air used to cushion something. This compositional, literal relationship (container + content/function) is cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows both words can infer the MWE's basic meaning without prior exposure.
Etymology
Air bag comes from a simple image: a soft bag that suddenly fills with air and stops a person from hitting parts of the car in a crash. So, air bag now means the car safety device that inflates in a crash 'to protect' people.