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Meaning & use

personal safety

phrase·Everyday

Last updated

UK/ˌpɜːsənl ˈseɪfti/
US/ˌpɜːrsənl ˈseɪfti/

Meanings

  1. phraseuncountable

    the state of being protected from harm, danger, or attack as an individual person.

    Grammar: Used as a single idea and takes a singular verb: Personal safety matters.

    Patterns

    • personal safety is important
    • ensure someone's personal safety
    • threaten someone's personal safety

    The course teaches students basic personal safety when walking home at night.

    Before the trip, the guide gave us advice about personal safety in the city.

    Workers complained that the new schedule put their personal safety at risk.

  2. phraseuncountable

    the measures and habits a person uses to avoid injury or crime.

    Grammar: Often appears before another noun, as in 'personal safety training' or 'personal safety equipment'.

    Patterns

    • personal safety training
    • personal safety equipment
    • personal safety rules

    All new staff must complete personal safety training in their first week.

    The school reviewed its personal safety rules after a student was hurt.

    She bought a whistle as a simple piece of personal safety equipment.

Common combinations

personal safety training
The company runs personal safety training every year.
ensure personal safety
Police officers are trained to ensure personal safety at large events.
a personal safety risk
Walking alone at midnight is a personal safety risk.
personal safety concerns
Parents raised personal safety concerns about the new bus route.
threaten someone's personal safety
His threatening messages threatened her personal safety.

Synonyms and how they differ

security
Security is broader and often about systems, guards, or protection of property, while personal safety focuses on the individual's body and well-being.
self-defense
Self-defense means physically fighting back against an attack, but personal safety also covers prevention and avoiding danger.

Word family

personal adjective
belonging or relating to one particular person.
safety noun
the condition of being safe from harm.
safely adverb
in a way that avoids danger or harm.

Commonly confused: personal safety or public safety?

personal safety vs public safety

Public safety means protecting everyone in a community, usually by police or fire services; personal safety is about protecting yourself as an individual.

Practice

The workshop focuses on ______ for people who travel alone.

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