Other forms: safeguarding, safeguards, safeguarded
To safeguard is to protect something from harm or loss. Safeguard the data, safeguard jobs, safeguards against abuse.
As a noun a safeguard is the protection itself, and in official writing safeguards are the specific measures that stop a power being misused. Safeguarding, in British schools and care work, is the whole discipline of protecting children and vulnerable adults.
1verbsafeguardTo protect something from harm or loss.
“The new law is designed to safeguard workers' rights.”
safeguard is a protecting.
Middle French sauvegarde, from sauve, safe, plus garde, a guard.
Middle French
sauvegarde
Middle English
savegard
English, today
safeguard
From Middle English savegard, from Middle French sauvegarde, from Old French - salve garde, sauve garde, reconstructed as safe + guard.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA