safety net

noun

1. a large net rigged between a person, as a trapeze performer, and the ground as protection in a fall.

2. something that provides a margin of protection or security.

   the safety net of federal credit for financial institutions.

safety net

noun

1. a net used in a circus to catch high-wire and trapeze artistes if they fall

2. any means of protection from hardship or loss, such as insurance

Other Word Forms

• safety-net adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of safety net¹

First recorded in 1945–50

Example Sentences

Another point he makes is that the safety net does catch people at the very bottom, but traps anyone who climbs out.

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This makes our existing social safety net more important than ever.

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Yet California’s system of protecting farmworkers from pesticide dangers is anything but a tight safety net.

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Hochman noted the first settlement would have massive financial ramifications for decades for the county, which acts as a social safety net for the region.

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But the idea has been criticised, with disability charity Scope calling for the government to tackle the "real barriers" young disabled people face in finding work before removing "financial safety nets".

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