definitions

rescue

[ res-kyoo ]
/ ˈrɛs kyu /
||
SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR rescue ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object), res·cued, res·cu·ing.

to free or deliver from confinement, violence, danger, or evil.
Law. to liberate or take by forcible or illegal means from lawful custody.

noun

the act of rescuing.

adjective

of or relating to someone or something trained or equipped to rescue: a rescue dog.

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RELATED WORDS

delivery, salvage, recovery, relief, preserve, protect, retrieve, liberate, extricate, keep, free, release, recover, recapture, ransom, saving, redemption, feat, reclamation, heroism

Nearby words

rescind, rescissible, rescission, rescissory, rescript, rescue, rescue dog, rescue grass, rescue mission, reseal, research

Origin of rescue

1300–50; (v.) Middle English rescuen < Old French rescourre, equivalent to re- re- + escourre to shake, drive out, remove < Latin excutere (ex- ex-1 + -cutere, combining form of quatere to shake); (noun) Middle English, derivative of the v.

Related forms

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for rescue

British Dictionary definitions for rescue

rescue

/ (ˈrɛskjuː) /

verb -cues, -cuing or -cued (tr)

to bring (someone or something) out of danger, attack, harm, etc; deliver or save
to free (a person) from legal custody by force
law to seize (goods or property) by force

noun

  1. the act or an instance of rescuing
  2. (as modifier)a rescue party
the forcible removal of a person from legal custody
law the forcible seizure of goods or property

Derived Forms

rescuable, adjectiverescuer, noun

Word Origin for rescue

C14: rescowen, from Old French rescourre, from re- + escourre to pull away, from Latin excutere to shake off, from quatere to shake
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