lifesavern.
/ˈlʌɪfˌseɪvə/, U.S. /ˈlaɪfˌseɪvər/ 1. A person or thing that saves or may save a person's life.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > safety > rescue or deliverance > [noun] > means of > means of saving life
lifesaver1722
the world > action or operation > safety > protection or defence > preservation from injury or destruction > [noun] > that which preserves from injury or destruction > that may preserve life
lifesaver1722
1722 D. Turner Art of Surg. I. iii. 265 If this Life-saver [sc. a surgeon] can say, he was never foiled in reducing an intestinal Hernia, tho' call'd in at what Time he would desire, he can say more..than most other Gentlemen of the Profession.
1845 Freeman's Jrnl. (Dublin) 1 Mar. 1/1 [Of a dog] Life saver!—wave stemmer! Deep diver!—Away!
1878 T. C. Duncan Diseases of Infants & Children I. 340 Damascene..has proved a life-saver in many instances. The one doubt of its value lies in the possible presence of parasitic germs.
1944 Living off Land: Man. Bushcraft v. 112 Failure to take a life-saver [sc. quinine or atebrine] on account of the bitter taste sounds childish yet there are such childish persons.
1995 J. E. Rohde & H. Viswanathan Rural Private Practitioner vi. 107 The rural doctor is not a ‘life-saver’ but rather a welcome ‘alleviator of symptoms’.
2006 Daily Tel. 25 July 23/2 Delays in implementing the new [computer] systems in acute hospitals are denying the NHS a potential lifesaver.
2. Originally U.S. = lifeguard n. 2b. Cf. surf lifesaver n. at surf n. Compounds 2a. Now chiefly Australian and New Zealand.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > safety > protection or defence > watching or keeping guard > [noun] > one who watches or keeps guard > watcher against accidents to bathers
lifesaver1887
lifeguard1893
1887 Courier-Jrnl. (Louisville, Kentucky) 10 Feb. 8/3 The Police and the Life-Savers still prying into the mystery of Smyser's Pond.
1903 Boston Evening Transcript 20 Aug. According to a decision of the Election Commissioners a City Point life saver cannot vote.
1931 V. Palmer Separate Lives 99 ‘It's the life-savers!’ he shouted. ‘They're practising! Come on.’
1958 Observer 16 Nov. 27/2 He is a handsome cove, in the Australian surf life-saver tradition.
1963 V. B. Cranley 27,000 Miles through Austral. xi. 78 A new life-boat donated to the local surf life-savers. Their performance of swimming and rescue work was really outstanding.
1996 A. MacCormick Shark Attacks (1998) 166 The shark attacked while the lifesaver and five friends were swimming about 250 yards from the crowded beach.
3. figurative. Something (esp. a quality, characteristic, or circumstance) that helps a person to endure adversity or to overcome a severe difficulty. Occasionally applied to a person.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > hope > optimism > [noun] > ability to endure adversity > quality enabling
lifesaver1900
the world > action or operation > safety > protection or defence > preservation from injury or destruction > [noun] > that which preserves from injury or destruction > that may preserve life > quality or circumstance that
lifesaver1900
1900 G. Ade More Fables 82 This Plan miscarried, because all the Men wanted to hear Rag Time played by Josephine, the Life-Saver.
1902 Truth (Sydney) 16 Mar. 4/4 The popular ‘tray-bit’, ‘thrum’, ‘scrum’, or ‘boozer's life-saver’.
1934 F. S. Fitzgerald Let. 18 Dec. (1964) 258 Again thanks for the money. It was a life-saver.
1946 J. Adams From Gags to Riches iii. 48 For me, and for a lot of other actors, the borsht belt, in the Catskill Mountains, was a lifesaver during the summer months.
1973 C. Egleton Seven Days to Killing ix. 101 He spotted a Falk street plan of Paris. It cost him six francs but it proved to be a life-saver.
1990 T. Cunliffe Easy on Helm xv. 129 The roving fender is a life-saver..on many occasions. Always keep it handy.
2004 Horse Illustr. Apr. 66 The backhoe..is a lifesaver should you need to clear out irrigation channels and ponds.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2009; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1722