safeties

1. 1
   noun

   Plural of safety.

   The defense relied on its safeties to break up long passing plays.

   Both safeties on the rifle must be engaged before it goes back in the case.

   Note

   The y-to-ies plural, shared by every countable meaning of safety: the defensive backs who guard against long passes, the two-point plays scored in the end zone, and the locking catches on a weapon or machine. Only the setting tells them apart: two safeties on a rifle are locks, and two on a football field are players. The same spelling also serves as the verb's present-tense form.

2. 2
   verb

   Third-person singular simple present indicative of safety.

   The technician safeties the turnbuckle once the cable tension is set.

   He safeties the castle nut with a cotter pin during the final assembly.

   Note

   A mechanic's verb with a precise job. To safety a component, such as a turnbuckle or a castle nut, is to lock it so vibration cannot work it loose, and aviation is where the word belongs most. With guns, it means securing a firing pin. It always takes a direct object, and because it shares its spelling with the plural noun, only the sentence shows whether safeties is acting or naming.

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