safety valve
Americannoun
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a device that, when actuated by a gas or vapor pressure above a predetermined level, opens and allows the gas or vapor to escape until its pressure is reduced to a pressure equal to or below that of the predetermined level.
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a harmless outlet for emotion, tension, etc.
noun
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a valve in a pressure vessel that allows fluid to escape when a predetermined level of pressure has been reached
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a harmless outlet for emotion, energy, tension, etc
Etymology
Origin of safety valve
First recorded in 1805–15
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 port of Yanbu has emerged as a vital safety valve for Saudi crude, allowing Riyadh to bypass the paralyzed Strait of Hormuz by piping oil via its East-West pipeline.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 19, 2026
Dot plots and macro projections serve as a pressure safety valve where disagreement can be hashed out, without harming the consistency of the policy message.
From Barron's • Dec. 12, 2025
In that incident, the board’s investigation found multiple safety failures, including a severely eroded safety valve that allowed flammable gases to dangerously seep into unwanted areas.
From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 4, 2025
When the pipe work from which the safety valve had been removed was pressurised at start-up, gas began leaking.
From BBC • Aug. 23, 2025
There is one valve closed by a weight, although it is not in this case a safety valve; however, Papin describes the operation of such a valve.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
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.
