self-preservation

American  

[self-prez-er-vey-shuhn, self-] / ˈsɛlfˌprɛz ərˈveɪ ʃən, ˌsɛlf- /

noun

1. preservation of oneself from harm or destruction.

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self-preservation British  

noun

1. the preservation of oneself from danger or injury, esp as a basic instinct

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Other Word Forms

• self-preserving adjective

Etymology

Origin of self-preservation

First recorded in 1605–15

Example Sentences

"The idea first developed as self-preservation," he explains, but it transformed the battlefield.

From BBC • Apr. 27, 2026

The film presents Taylor as a kindly spirit, which turns out to be little more than calculated self-preservation.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 24, 2026

Every second spent on the mountain is a second spent deciding whether to go for broke or pull back out of self-preservation.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 6, 2026

When people feel connected to something larger than self-preservation, trust rises.

From MarketWatch • Dec. 18, 2025

He believed that children, like little monkeys, were born with certain instincts of self-preservation, but that the instincts vanished because babies were kept cooped up in a crib.

From "Cheaper by the Dozen" by Frank B. Gilbreth Jr. and Ernestine Gilbreth Carey