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Synonyms

life jacket

American  

noun

  1. a sleeveless jacket of buoyant or inflatable construction, for supporting the wearer in deep water and preventing drowning.

life jacket British  

noun

  1. an inflatable sleeveless jacket worn to keep a person afloat when in danger of drowning

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of life jacket

First recorded in 1865–70

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.

“So we put on life jackets. That was the compromise.”

From The Wall Street Journal

They were all wearing life jackets - but they had no food or water.

From BBC

The youngster said he started heading for shore with just his life jacket but later abandoned it to swim unencumbered.

From Barron's

"He swam in, he reckons, the first two hours with a life jacket on," he told ABC News.

From BBC

Those who survived then spent hours bobbing in life jackets or clinging to other floatation devices while awaiting rescue, the 53-year-old lawyer said.

From Barron's

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.