safely
Americanadverb
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without harm or injury.
The travel team has arrived safely and on schedule.
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without risk or danger.
While we sit safely in our air-conditioned homes complaining, he’s driving across the country working for change.
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in a way that protects from loss, damage, or harm.
I wanted that piece of paper safely filed away, just in case I needed to look at it again.
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without likelihood of being wrong; with reasonable assurance.
I think we can safely say that the zoo expects some puma kittens later this year!
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of safely
Explanation
Do something in a careful or cautious way, and you'll do it safely. The most important thing you'll learn in a drivers ed class is to drive safely. "Travel safely!" you might call to a departing friend. You're encouraging them to avoid danger as they make their way home. You can bike safely by wearing a helmet and using hand signals, and use power tools safely by following all the rules and focusing on your work. Safely comes from safe and its Latin root salvus, "uninjured or in good health."
Vocabulary lists containing safely
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.
Other scientists say the atlas could also help neurosurgeons navigate the brainstem more safely.
From BBC ● Jul. 13, 2026
Learning to drive initially demands constant attention, but years of experience allow many people to carry on a conversation, listen to music, or think through a problem while still driving safely.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 12, 2026
“Nothing matters more right now than completing demolition and cleanup as quickly and safely as possible to protect the health and safety of Boyle Heights and East L.A.,” the statement read.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 10, 2026
"There's no AI autonomous algorithms ever capable to handle that safely."
From Barron's ● Jul. 10, 2026
Later, when the dragon had grown too large to stay here safely, Aaron faced great peril to send it back to the rest of its kind.
From "Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher" by Bruce Coville
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.
