rescue
Americanverb (used with object)
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rescues,
present (3rd person singular)
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rescued,
past participle, past
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rescuing
present participle
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to free or deliver from confinement, danger, or difficulty: She rescued me from an awkward conversation.
The police were able to rescue the hostages in time.
She rescued me from an awkward conversation.
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Law. to liberate or take by forcible or illegal means from lawful custody.
noun
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rescues
plural
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the act of rescuing.
- Synonyms:
- emancipation, redemption, release, deliverance, liberation
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the act of rescuing animals from danger, abuse, or neglect, as the adoption of stray and abandoned animals from an animal shelter, or the protection of wild animals in an animal sanctuary.
Animal rescue requires cooperation between animal control agencies and shelters.
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a group or organization that participates in such animal welfare activities: breed-specific rescues.
your local rescue;
breed-specific rescues.
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a domestic animal adopted from an animal shelter or other animal welfare group.
Our new puppy is a rescue!
adjective
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of or relating to someone or something trained or equipped to rescue.
The county's three certified rescue dogs and their handlers searched for earthquake survivors in the rubble.
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of or relating to a domestic animal adopted or available for adoption from an animal shelter or other animal welfare group.
rescue puppies and kittens looking for loving families.
verb
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to bring (someone or something) out of danger, attack, harm, etc; deliver or save
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to free (a person) from legal custody by force
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law to seize (goods or property) by force
noun
-
-
the act or an instance of rescuing
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( as modifier )
a rescue party
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the forcible removal of a person from legal custody
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law the forcible seizure of goods or property
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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nonrescuenoun
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rescuernoun
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quasi-rescuedadjective
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rescuableadjective
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rescuelessadjective
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unrescuableadjective
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unrescuedadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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rescuesimple
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rescuessimple
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have rescuedperfect
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has rescuedperfect
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am rescuingprogressive
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are rescuingprogressive
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is rescuingprogressive
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have been rescuingperfect progressive
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has been rescuingperfect progressive
Past
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rescuedsimple
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had rescuedperfect
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was rescuingprogressive
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were rescuingprogressive
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had been rescuingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of rescue
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English verb rescuen, from Old French rescourre, equivalent to re- + escourre “to shake, drive out, remove,” from Latin excutere ( ex- + -cutere, combining form of quatere “to shake”); see origin at re-, ex- 1
Explanation
When you rescue something, you save it from something bad — you come to the rescue. If Muffin, your kitten, is stuck in a tree, you can get out your ladder and climb up to rescue her. A rescue is a good thing, much appreciated by people (and kittens). If your house is in foreclosure, you'd be very grateful for the uncle who comes to your rescue by paying your mortgage. Whenever there's an earthquake or other disaster, rescue operations are quickly put in place to find survivors. You can use the word more casually, as in describing how you saunter over at a cocktail party and rescue your friend from a conversation with an insufferable bore.
Vocabulary lists containing rescue
Beowulf vocabulary
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"Enabling or Disabling?" and "This I Believe"
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"One Crazy Summer" by Rita Williams-Garcia, List 3
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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.
See Examples For:
More than 100 people remain missing, but rescue operations have been called off in many buildings.
From Barron's ● Aug. 17, 2026
Nathaniel’s father, Sumit Rai, was also at the meeting and thanked Williams, saying that he’s “beyond grateful” for the rescue.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2026
A government spokesperson said the alert was sent "after a direct request from fire and rescue services" and it was working closely with domestic abuse charities for tests of the system.
From BBC ● Aug. 16, 2026
Qatar also invited Iranian officials to visit and be briefed on the details of the search and rescue attempts, but Iran didn’t respond to the invitation, he said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026
The Arctic expedition and the American rescue mission had cost a fortune.
From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock
In Indianapolis on Saturday, officials conducted 56 water rescues and one man was transported to the hospital, according to the Indianapolis Fire Department.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026
"Major rainfall flooding may prompt many evacuations and rescues," the NWS said, adding that rivers and tributaries "may rapidly overflow their banks in multiple places".
From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2026
The intense conditions have prompted thousands of lifeguard rescues along the coast.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 2, 2026
Last weekend, lifeguards in Los Angeles County performed a record 1,950 ocean rescues -- numbers that lifeguard captain Pono Barnes called "staggering."
From Barron's ● Aug. 1, 2026
Mother rescues him: I Ve know you’re from a proper family and did not realize the damage of your insult.
From "Inside Out and Back Again" by Thanhha Lai
A Colombian woman who was rescued after being trapped for nearly 37 hours under the rubble in the wake of a strong earthquake has died of her injuries, her family told AFP on Saturday.
From Barron's ● Aug. 16, 2026
The family were checked in hospital after being rescued and were discharged shortly afterwards, Chomchoey told AFP.
From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2026
Jackie died Sunday night at the Ojai Raptor Center, which had cared for her since she was rescued from the shore of Big Bear Lake in mid-July.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026
In another case last week, a sailor jumped off the ship and spent about an hour in the water before he was rescued and medically evacuated from the Lincoln.
From Slate ● Aug. 14, 2026
They’d have to be rescued, by which time the two men would be long gone.
From "The Boy Who Met a Whale" by Nizrana Farook
Remote-piloted drones help to deliver supplies and evacuate the wounded, rescuing servicemen, Ukraine’s most valuable resource, but they remain labor intensive.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
London Fire Brigade said it dealt with more than 1,300 incidents over the weekend - including grass fires, property fires and rescuing a person from the Thames.
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
But chances of finding anyone alive beneath deep rubble dwindles rapidly after a critical 72-hour window for rescuing trapped people.
From Barron's ● Jul. 2, 2026
This time around, Enola’s impending wedding is interrupted when she learns Sherlock’s been kidnapped and needs rescuing.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 30, 2026
Shay winked, pushed a button, and said, “Hey, it’s me, Shay. No, I’m sorry, Dr. Cable’s busy. Doing what? Well, it’s complicated . She muted the device. “Shouldn’t you be rescuing people or something, Tally?
From "Uglies" by Scott Westerfeld
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.
