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Glite Dictionary
safety nut

safety nut

6.6
A second metal piece that screws onto a bolt to stop it from loosening
  • noun
  • Specialized
translation icon : tuerca de seguridad
  • Always use a safety nut on critical joints to prevent fasteners from loosening due to vibration.

Examples

  • The mechanic tightened the safety nut to ensure the wheel didn't come loose.

  • She replaced the missing safety nut to make the assembly more secure.

  • The mechanic tightened the safety nut securely.

  • Always check the safety nuts before starting the machine.

  • Always use a safety nut on critical joints to prevent fasteners from loosening due to vibration.

  • She replaced the missing safety nut to make the assembly more secure.

  • The mechanic tightened the safety nut to ensure the wheel didn't come loose.

Synonyms

locknut
vssafety nut
  • Specialized
1 6.8

An extra nut screwed onto a main nut to stop it coming loose

is fitted onto the primary nut itself rather than on the bolt

Surface Forms

safety nut singular
safety nuts plural

Morphology

safety + nut

The meaning 'a supplementary nut screwed onto a primary nut to prevent loosening' is directly derivable from combining 'safety' (a device/feature that prevents danger or failure) with 'nut' (a threaded fastener): it denotes a nut used for safety. This modifier+noun composition is straightforward and common across languages, so an average B1 learner who knows both words will understand the MWE.

Etymology

The name safety nut comes from a simple idea: it is an extra nut that is screwed on after the first nut to hold that first nut tight. By stopping the first nut from coming loose, the extra nut makes the fastening 'safe', so a safety nut means 'a nut used to stop another nut from loosening'.