rescue
Americanverb (used with object)
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to free or deliver from confinement, danger, or difficulty: She rescued me from an awkward conversation.
The police were able to rescue the hostages in time.
She rescued me from an awkward conversation.
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Law. to liberate or take by forcible or illegal means from lawful custody.
noun
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the act of rescuing.
- Synonyms:
- emancipation, redemption, release, deliverance, liberation
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the act of rescuing animals from danger, abuse, or neglect, as the adoption of stray and abandoned animals from an animal shelter, or the protection of wild animals in an animal sanctuary.
Animal rescue requires cooperation between animal control agencies and shelters.
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a group or organization that participates in such animal welfare activities: breed-specific rescues.
your local rescue;
breed-specific rescues.
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a domestic animal adopted from an animal shelter or other animal welfare group.
Our new puppy is a rescue!
adjective
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of or relating to someone or something trained or equipped to rescue.
The county's three certified rescue dogs and their handlers searched for earthquake survivors in the rubble.
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of or relating to a domestic animal adopted or available for adoption from an animal shelter or other animal welfare group.
rescue puppies and kittens looking for loving families.
verb
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to bring (someone or something) out of danger, attack, harm, etc; deliver or save
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to free (a person) from legal custody by force
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law to seize (goods or property) by force
noun
-
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the act or an instance of rescuing
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( as modifier )
a rescue party
-
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the forcible removal of a person from legal custody
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law the forcible seizure of goods or property
Other Word Forms
- nonrescue noun
- quasi-rescued adjective
- rescuable adjective
- rescueless adjective
- rescuer noun
- unrescuable adjective
- unrescued adjective
Etymology
Origin of rescue
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English verb rescuen, from Old French rescourre, equivalent to re- + escourre “to shake, drive out, remove,” from Latin excutere ( ex- + -cutere, combining form of quatere “to shake”); re-, ex- 1
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The S&P 500 had its best day of 2026, but it wasn’t enough to rescue the benchmark from its worst quarter in nearly four years.
In a Facebook post, mountain rescue said the climbing leader was uninjured after the fall and managed to regain the belay device which helps to keep the climbers safe.
From BBC
"No evidence of any criminally relevant breaches of duty was found, either in connection with the time-consuming rescue operation or with the subsequent medical care at the University Hospital Zurich."
From BBC
Missed her home in the mountains, her own thrifted blankets, and Snapdragon—the three-legged rescue cat who ruled the Chambers house.
From Literature
The rescue float that was slung over his shoulder has been replaced with a guitar case.
From Literature
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
